


oh darling, please don't let me be misunderstood

by ecubed



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - High School, ChenJi, Enemies, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, High School, Identity Reveal, Jichen, M/M, NCT Dream - Freeform, Online Friendship, Online Relationship, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Secret Crush, Secret Identity, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Sungle, Teen Romance, adding that tag just for you jisung, chenle is confused, chensung - Freeform, dreamies, jisung is awkward, kind of?, lucas is a dreamie fight me, nomin if you blink
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-28
Updated: 2019-05-02
Packaged: 2019-08-08 22:33:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16438079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ecubed/pseuds/ecubed
Summary: Jisung is bad at flirting. Chenle hates him.An online-friends au where Jisung and Chenle are online friends and Chenle has no idea that his worst enemy is really his best friend.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first thing I've written in a long, long time, so please be gentle with me. I couldn't help it, the dreamies and chensung stole my heart and made me write this.
> 
> There will be no explicit content in this. The boys are underage and I'm not comfortable with that. It's basically a fluffy little thing to celebrate chenle and jisung's beautiful bond.
> 
> I'm expecting this to be around 10k, but who know's. Probably around 5 chapters. I could've posted it in one go, but truth is that I just want to get this out there.

Chenle was sure of two things in life. The first, was that one day he was going to punch Jisung Park in the face, and the second, was that he was going to enjoy it immensely. 

As he pushed his way towards his usual table in the cafeteria, backpack bouncing angrily with every step, Chenle was sure that this day would come sooner rather than later. Jaemin, Jeno, Renjun and Lucas were already halfway through their lunches. Lucas and Jeno had cleared half the table and were playing an intense game of finger football, flicking a peanut back and forth, a set of overturned paper cups acting as goals. Chenle slides into the seat next to Renjun, slamming his lunch tray down on the table. The force of it sends one of the paper cup goal posts flying across the table. 

Lucas turns on him, but a quick look from Jaemin turns him silent. 

“He’s got Jisung-face again,” Jaemin says, by way of explanation.

“Has to be,” Renjun says, not looking up from his plate of noodles, “No one else could put him in such a foul mood.”

Chenle scowls at them both.

“Well, spit it out,” Jeno says, “What did he do this time?”

“I do not want to talk about it,” Chenle fumes, stabbing his spoon into his rice. He shoves the rice into his mouth almost biting off the head of the spoon. 

“It can’t be that bad,” Jeno continues, “Jisung is pretty harmless.”

Chenle’s eyes narrow dangerously. “Jisung Park is the worst person to have ever existed.”

“Aren’t you exaggerating a little?” Lucas asks, stealing a piece of dried seaweed from Chenle’s tray. “I mean, when you think about it, there are people like Stalin, Harvey Weinstein, that crazy Roman emperor who made his horse a general -”

Chenle closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. “I’m going to kill you,” he mutters under his breath. He turns back to his lunch, but then he can feel a set of eyes on him,

When he meets Jaemin’s eyes, they’re sparking in a way that makes Chenle’s stomach drop. 

“What is it?”

Jaemin ignores Chenle, turning to the other boys instead. “I think our Chenle needs a hug.”

Lucas nods in agreement. 

Renjun sighs deeply, “If we must.”

Chenle stiffens. “Don’t you dare,” he says, waving his chopsticks menacingly, in an attempt to get his friends to back off. 

He could not be less in the mood for a hug. 

Lucas just laughs.“That’s cute.”

“Get him,” Jeno says simply, and then they pounce, smothering Chenle in a crush of bodies.

 

* * *

 

When Chenle gets home, the first thing he does is log on to his laptop and send off a message to his best friend:

 **Le-letsdothis:**  
Jisung Park’s days are numbered.

Within a few minutes his computer pings with a reply.

 **Notyoursungbaenim:**  
Aw. What’d he do this time?

 **Le-letsdothis:**  
Remember when I told you I wanted to dye my hair green? Well I did (and it looks great btw, thanks for pushing me to do it). Well, he corners me on my way to lunch, jams a flower crown on my head, laughs, and tells me I look like such a fairy.

 **Notyoursungbaenim:**  
Maybe he meant it in a positive way. That you look cute, like a magical woodland creature.

 **Le-letsdothis:**  
Lol, you’re cute, always trying to see the best in people. But you should have heard the way he said it, his nose scrunching in disgust. Then he stalked away like he couldn’t bear to spend an extra second in my company.

 **Notyoursungbaenim:**  
I’m sure he didn’t mean it like that. How could he? You’re the cutest person alive.

 **Le-letsdothis:**  
Ha ha, how do you know I’m cute? You don’t even know what I look like.

 **Notyoursungbaenim:**  
I know you have green hair :p And I can just tell. I’m sure this Jisung knows it too. He’s probably just too intimidated by you and doesn’t know what to do about it.

 **Le-letsdothis:**  
Doubt it. I know Jisung Park.

5 minutes pass with no answer. 

Chenle frowns and taps out another message.

 **Le-letsdothis:**  
Hey… you still there?

 **Notyoursungbaenim:**  
Yeah, sorry. Mum wants me to help with dinner. Talk to you soon.

 **Le-letsdothis:**  
Ok :(  
_[unread]_

Chenle shuts the lid of his laptop. He flops down on his bed, arms and legs hanging off the sides of his tiny single bed, and sighs, closing his eyes. In quiet moments, Chenle sometimes likes to imagine the sweet, satisfying thud that his fist would make as it collided with Park’s jaw. The thought often brought a smile to his face. The other version of his Jisung-face. The one Renjun said made him look unhinged.

That was a very different smile to the one currently playing on his lips. This one was solely reserved for Jason Notyoursungbaenim - though Chenle doubted Jason was his real name (he himself went by Lele online). This particular smile was soft, and Jeno said it made Chenle’s eyes sparkle like a Disney princess. Lucas made retching noises whenever it made an appearance (“That’s gross, man.”)

He didn’t know Jason’s real name. He didn’t even know whether he knew him in real life. Sometimes the things Jason said made it seem like he was from the same area - bus routes, weather - simple everyday things that Chenle might miss if he wasn’t so desperate for any hint as to who Jason could be. Other times the boy said things that were so weird he might as well have been from another planet. 

He had no idea who the boy is, but he’s sure that if Jason was somehow part of his everyday life, he would know.  
He would feel it. It would be impossible to hide such sweetness in plain sight. He’s almost certain of that.

There was a brief, horrifying moment when he’d suspected that Jason might be Mark Lee, a senior with a laugh as distinctive as Chenle’s. Mark has always been kind to Chenle, looking after him in the first few months after he’d arrived in Korea. He’s not so sure anymore, but he can’t help feeling guilty when he’s flooded with relief every time Jason says something distinctly un-Mark-like. He might like and respect Mark, but he doesn’t fill Chenle with the same buoyant lightness that Jason does. He doesn’t make Chenle’s heart feel like it’s about to burst out of his chest and fly away. 

Chenle rolls over onto his chest and buries his face in his pillow. Then his phone vibrates and Chenle almost trips over his own feet as he lunges for it.

 **Notyoursungbaenim:**  
❤

“You’re so gone,” he whispers to himself, as he hugs his phone tightly to his chest.

 

* * *

 

“Explain it to me again,” Mark demands. He is pinching the bridge of his nose - a habit he picked up from Jisung - and that is never a good sign. 

Jisung sighs, and looks down at his feet. “I wanted to tell him he looked pretty with his new hair, and somehow, now he thinks I was being homophobic.”

Donghyuck looks up from his phone, fixing Jisung with an incredulous look. “And how did you manage that?”

“I may have called him a fairy…” Jisung says quietly, his cheeks flaming.

Donghyuck just blinks, and turns to Mark. “He’s hopeless,” he says flatly. “I think it might be time to abandon this little project and jump ship.”

He looks at Jisung. “Have you seriously considered life as a hermit? Because that’s totally a viable life choice.”

Jisung slumps forward, burying his face in his hands. 

Mark glares at Donghyuck. He puts a comforting hand on Jisung’s shoulder. “No, no,” he says, as he pats Jisung’s shoulder. “We’ve got to be positive. We can fix this.”

‘You think so?” 

“Of course, nothing is over. All you need to do is go over to Chenle at school, apologise and explain what you meant.”

“That sounds easy enough,” Jisung says slowly. 

“Not for you,” Donghyuck mutters almost too quietly for Jisung to hear. 

“Ignore him,” Mark reassures Jisung. “You’ll be fine.”

“Possibly,” Donghyuck adds. 

Donghyuck barely has enough time to duck to avoid the tissue box that Mark sends flying in his direction. 

 

* * *

Chenle is walking towards his Korean class, arm in arm with Lucas. They’re giggling (or in Chenle’s case - screeching) over Jaemin’s latest attempts to woo Jeno, when Chenle hears his name coming from somewhere behind him. He turns in confusion, to see Jisung Park standing behind him, lanky and pidgeon-toed.

Instantly, the laughter dies on his lips and the smile drops from his face. 

“What do you want?” he asks flatly.

“Can I talk to you?”

“You already are.”

Jisung swallows hard, his adam’s apple bobbing visibly, “Alone?”

Chenle’s eyebrows shoot up. “Why?” he asks, eyes narrowing in suspicion.

“Um…”

“Just go, man,” Lucas says encouragingly, giving Chenle a little push in Jisung’s direction. Chenle glares at his friend.

“Please?”

Chenle startles at that, and finds himself nodding, “OK.” 

He follows Jisung down the corridor, until they reach a relatively quiet alcove by the stairs leading towards the music rooms.

They stand facing each other, and Chenle takes a moment to size up his opponent. Jisung towers over him, but Chenle does not let himself feel small. Jisung pushes his hair back from his forehead, a nervous gesture. His bites his lip, and he looks deceptively sweet - definitely not the face of someone who’d filled Chenle’s locker with rotting vegetation, ruining his textbooks, or tucked sticky cakes into his sports bag, so that it had crawled with ants.

“Well?” Chenle prompts. He’s quickly losing patience.

“Um…” Jisung clears his throat. “It’s about yesterday.”

Chenle feels his body stiffen.

“Uh...I think there’s been a misunderstanding…” Jisung continues hesitantly. “When I said those things yesterday, I wasn’t trying to make fun of you. I’m sorry if that’s how it came across. It’s just- it looks nice. Your hair. The green, I mean. It’s pretty.”

Jisung takes a shallow breath. “And I just want you to know that I have no problems with the gay thing. Gay is okay. I love gay. The more gay the better, I say.”

Chenle just gapes at him. “You’re starting to sound like a Dr. Seuss book, Park.”

Jisung blushes. “Sorry.”

“So if you wanted to say you liked my hair, why didn’t you just say that?” Chenle asks slowly.

Jisung looks at his feet. “Just awkward, I guess. My friend Donghyuck calls me socially-challenged.”

Chenle’s laugh takes both of them by surprise.

Jisung’s lips curl up slightly at the sound, and Chenle is momentarily struck by what a difference a smile can make. He looks so much younger, softer, kinder. 

The thought is so foreign to Chenle, that shocks him back to reality. He fixes Jisung with a curious look. “Why are you even telling me this? You don’t care about my feelings or what I think. You hate me.”

Jisung’s eyes widen. “What? I don’t hate you.”

Chenle rolls his eyes at that. “Come on, Park. All those stunts you’ve pulled. Were they all just a series of misunderstandings as well?”

“Yes,” Jisung says quietly.

“You really expect me to believe that?”

Jisung looks up at Chenle, his eyes burning with a strange fire. It’s the first time he’s looked Chenle directly in the eyes, and the force of that look sends a jolt through Chenle’s body. 

“It doesn’t matter whether you believe it, or not. It’s the truth.” Jisung sounds almost angry. In all the years he’s known Jisung, Chenle has never seen him like this.

Just then the bell rings, signalling their last chance to get to class.

“I have to go,” Chenle says, his voice careful.

Jisung nods. “Me too.”

“Ok… well, bye,” Chenle finishes awkwardly, before turning his back on Jisung.

 

* * *

 

All throughout class, Chenle is distracted. Even once lunch rolls around, he feels strangely disconnected. He barely touches his food, just pokes absentmindedly at his beef. 

It doesn’t take long for his friends to notice there’s something wrong. He isn’t exactly known for being quiet.

Lucas knocks his elbow against Chenle’s. “Hey, you still thinking about Jisung?”

Jaemin shakes his head. “Can’t be, that’s not Jisung-face.”

Chenle looks up from his food. “Actually… it is Jisung-face.”

“For someone who hates Jisung, you sure do spend a lot of time thinking about him,” Jeno observes.

“I think about him _because _I hate him,” Chenle says impatiently, rolling his eyes in annoyance. “But that is not the point."__

____

__

____

__

Something in Chenle’s tone must have alerted his friends that this was not a time for jokes or teasing, because suddenly all attention is on Chenle. Even Renjun puts down his chopsticks, curiosity lighting his face.

Chenle takes a deep breath and quickly goes over the morning’s events, filling his friends in on the details of his encounter with Jisung Park. When he’s finished, he looks at each of his friends in turn.

“Well…what was that?” he prompts, “Anyone have any ideas?”  


“He’s recently had a near-experience, and is now making amends for his poor life choices?” Jaemin volunteers.

“Alien abduction?” Renjun suggests, earning himself a kick under the table from Jaemin.

“Maybe he has a crush on Chenle.” Lucas says slowly. 

Chenle stares at him for a moment, before dissolving into a fit of giggles. “Nice one, Lucas. You’ve almost topped Renjun for most ridiculous suggestion. Anyone else have any ideas?”

“No, listen,” Lucas insists. “Why else would he care so much about what Chenle thinks? And he was pretty determined to make clear that he had no problems with gay people. Why would he do that, if not because he liked our Lele?”

Jeno shrugs. “He’s just weird isn’t he?”

Chenle nods. “Yeah, I think that’s the one. Lee Jeno wins.”

“Still think I’m right,” Lucas mutters to himself, as the conversation changes course and the rest of his friends start arguing over what movie they were going to see that weekend.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone,
> 
> New chapter today! Took a little longer than anticipated because Chenle and Jisung kept doing annoying things like falling for one another too quickly, so I had to metaphorically hose them down (aka edit the heck out of this).
> 
> I'm not confident about this chapter, but it does move the story along. I hope you like it

Chenle is having a rough week. 

It starts with his favourite watch. At exactly four past four on Sunday afternoon, the second hand gives a final feeble tick before shuddering to a stop. Even a change of batteries doesn’t revive it. At first, Chenle doesn’t give it much thought. He might be Chinese, but he isn’t particularly superstitious, so he chalks it up to an unfortunate coincidence, and puts the double fours out of his mind. 

That becomes more and more difficult as everything begins to go wrong. First, he fails a test in English, because his alarm doesn’t go off and by the time he gets to school, he’s missed half the test, and Miss Jacobs, refuses to let him resit because it ‘wouldn’t be fair to the other students.’ He manages to sprain his ankle tripping over Lucas’s absurdly long legs, as he they play basketball after school. On Wednesday afternoon, he has to borrow a shirt from his P.E teacher, because he somehow manages to spill an entire bowl of kimchi jiggae down the front of his pristine white shirt (and to make matters worse, the stew wasn’t even his). His teacher, Mr. Choi, is a head taller than Chenle, and twice as broad, and the shirt almost reaches Chenle’s knees, the sleeves extending well past his elbows. The shirt swallows him, and he looks like a kid playing dress up. More than once, he catches Jisung Park smirking at the sight of him.

By Thursday, Chenle has had enough. 

“That is an interesting look you’ve gone for today, Chenle” Jaemin says carefully, as they crowd around their favourite table.

Chenle glares at him. He’s well aware that today’s sartorial choices are a little unconventional. He’s dressed all in red, from his red denim jacket, all the way to the red converse on his feet. His outfit is accented only by a ring of jade looping around his wrist, and the carved jade dragon pendant resting against his chest. Chenle isn’t taking any chances.

“I think we really need to talk about _this, _” Jeno says, gesturing towards Chenle’s outfit. “It’s obviously a cry for help.”__

__“It hurts to look at you,” Lucas tells him._ _

__“It’s just a little protection,” Chenle explains, popping a grape into his mouth. “Because of the whole bad fortune thing.”_ _

__Jeno rolls his eyes at that. “You do _not _have bad fortune.”___ _

____“Oh really?” Chenle pulls the broken watch from his jacket pocket. “Then explain this,” he demands, pushing the watch towards Renjun._ _ _ _

____He watches with satisfaction, as understanding lights Renjun’s face, and he visibly cringes away from the watch. “Why are you carrying that around?” Renjun hisses. “Get rid of it, Chenle.”_ _ _ _

____“What is it?” Lucas asks, peering over at the watch._ _ _ _

____“It must be Chenle’s bad omen,” Jeno explains as he too makes the connection. His lips twitch with amusement. “It stopped at four minutes past four, and now Chenle thinks he’s a magnet for bad luck.”_ _ _ _

____Lucas gently punches Chenle on the shoulder. “Come on, man. That’s all superstition. It’s not real.”_ _ _ _

____Chenle gives Lucas a pitying look. “What kind of Chinese are you?”_ _ _ _

____“Hong Kong is not China,” Lucas says proudly._ _ _ _

____Jeno huffs a laugh._ _ _ _

____“This is ridiculous,” Jaemin says, grabbing for the watch. “I’m confiscating this until you regain your senses and stop dressing like a stock Asian character in a racist American movie,” he tells Chenle firmly, as he drops the watch into the front pocket of his backpack. “You are not cursed, and there is no such thing as bad fortune.”_ _ _ _

____“Isn’t that right?” he says, looking pointedly at Renjun, who’s still looking a little shaken._ _ _ _

____“Of course there isn’t,” Renjun answers with a weak smile._ _ _ _

____Chenle feels momentarily reassured, but then Renjun slides his uneaten cookie onto Chenle’s lunch tray, and he can’t help but think Renjun’s words were motivated more by fear of Jaemin’s famous under the table kicks, than from the true conviction that Chenle’s bad luck is all in his head._ _ _ _

____That thought doesn’t make him feel any better._ _ _ _

____****************************************_ _ _ _

____Chenle knows exactly what’s coming the minute Mrs. Kim announces that she would be in charge of allocating their partners for their major project. It was going to include lab work, and would require a significant amount of work outside of class. So with his current stroke of bad luck, it was inevitable that his partner wouldn’t be Jeno or even little Henry, who’d just arrived from the U.S, and somehow skipped two chemistry grades._ _ _ _

____He doesn’t even blink when Jisung saunters over and slides into the empty seat on his left. Instead he throws his hand up in the air - a last attempt to loosen the grip of the bad fortune that had seized him so tightly. “Mrs. Kim, I would like to request a change of partner.”_ _ _ _

____Jisung stiffens._ _ _ _

____“Absolutely not.” Mrs. Kim says, shooting him a look so full of disdain that Chenle can almost feel himself shrinking under it. “I didn’t spend my free time partnering you up based on individual strengths, just to have you throw off my entire system, Mr. Zhong. I know that you and Mr. Park have had some problems in the past, but you’ll just have to put aside your differences and be civil to one another, because this project will make up a significant part of your grade, and my partner allocations are final.”_ _ _ _

____The expression on Mrs. Kim’s face leaves no room for discussion. “Now, if there’s nothing else, I will now distribute the assignment guidelines,” she says coldly. “You may have a couple of minutes to get to know your partner.” She takes a thick stack of paper from the desk and starts making her way around the room._ _ _ _

____“Was that really necessary?” Jisung demands, once Mrs. Kim is well out of earshot._ _ _ _

____Chenle flicks off the lid of his pen. “Don’t get upset. I’m having a bad week, and it was just instinctual. ”_ _ _ _

____“Having a bad day doesn’t give you the right to be an asshole,” Jisung mutters. He freezes the second the words leave his mouth. He stares at Chenle, eyes wide with shock, as if he can’t quite believe those words had come out of his mouth._ _ _ _

____Chenle stares at the flustered boy before him. “I don’t think you’ve ever spoken to me like that,” he says slowly. This new, more direct approach makes a nice change. At least then Chenle knows where he stands._ _ _ _

____Spots of colour bloom on Jisung’s cheeks, and his neck grows splotchy. “I know. I’m sorry.” Jisung says quickly. He draws a sharp breath. “I didn’t mean -”_ _ _ _

____“No.” Chenle cuts him off before he has a chance to continue. He’s still a little impressed that Jisung had the guts to call him out to his face - only his friends did that - and Jisung is about to ruin it. “You’re right. A bad week is no excuse. I’m sorry.”_ _ _ _

____Jisung’s lips part in surprise. “You’re apologising to me?”_ _ _ _

____“Yes? Chenle raises an eyebrow. “Is that ok with you?”_ _ _ _

____Jisung nods._ _ _ _

____“Good. Because right now there’s no reason for you to be the one apologising to me. I prefer to know what my enemy is thinking anyway.”_ _ _ _

____“We’re not enemies,” Jisung says, his tone sulky._ _ _ _

____“We’re not friends either,” Chenle counters. “And I’m still not completely convinced that you’re not going to pour glitter into my backpack-” Jisung opens his mouth to protest, “- or steal my P.E clothes again. It’s going to take some time before the mere sight of you stops setting off the alarm bells in my head.”_ _ _ _

____“OK.” Jisung dips his head in acceptance._ _ _ _

____Chenle sticks out his hand. “Now give me your schedule, so that we can figure out when to work on this assignment.”_ _ _ _

____Jisung opens his planner to the correct page, and slides his timetable towards Chenle, who quickly begins compare Jisung’s schedule with his own. They have the same free period on Fridays, and both of them finish early every Wednesday, so it shouldn’t be too hard to find a time that works for them both. Chenle jots down a couple of reminders in his notebook, before returning the planner to Jisung. “You must really like chemistry,” he observes. Every chemistry period on Jisung’s timetable had been marked by a tiny heart._ _ _ _

____The tips of Jisung’s ears grow red. He stuffs his planner into his backpack, before grabbing for the copy of the assignment guidelines that Mrs. Kim had dropped on their table._ _ _ _

____Chenle hadn’t even noticed the teacher approach their table. “Can I see those as well?” He slides his chair towards Jisung so that he can better see what would be expected from them. Jisung stiffens when Chenle’s shoulder brushes against his. “Relax, I don’t bite,” Chenle resists the urge to rolls his eyes. “Now turn the page please,” he instructs._ _ _ _

____After a few seconds of silence, Jisung clears his throat hesitantly. “Chenle, can I ask you something?”_ _ _ _

____“You already are.”_ _ _ _

____Jisung bites his lip to stop himself from smiling. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but what’s with all the red?”_ _ _ _

____“You’re as bad as my friends,” Chenle says with a shake of his head. “I’ve had an awful week. And red is supposed to ward off bad luck and attract good fortune. But apparently it also makes me look ridiculous.”_ _ _ _

____“I think it looks cute.”_ _ _ _

____Chenle pauses. “Are you making fun of me?”_ _ _ _

____“No. You look kind of like a strawberry. With your green hair.”_ _ _ _

____Chenle raises an eyebrow. “That’s a bit weird, Park.”_ _ _ _

____Jisung flushes and ducks his head. “Sorry.”_ _ _ _

____“Don’t be,” Chenle says kindly. “It’s kind of nice.”_ _ _ _

____He turns his attention back to the project guidelines. Or rather he tries to. He looks up to find Jisung looking at him again. Their shoulders are still touching, and Jisung’s face is close. Too close. “What is it?” It comes out sounding more impatient than he intends._ _ _ _

____Jisung frowns. “I’m sorry it didn’t work - the good fortune thing. I’m sorry you didn’t get the partner you wanted.”_ _ _ _

____The sincerity behind the words surprises Chenle. He smiles up at the younger boy. The smile is small and fleeting, but it’s genuine. “Maybe it won’t be so bad,” he says, and he’s amazed that he means it._ _ _ _

____Jisung’s answering smile is blinding._ _ _ _

____*******************************************************_ _ _ _

____The rest of the week goes by without incident. Chenle’s run of bad luck seems to have finally come to an end. Instead, the bad fortune finds a new victim in Jaemin._ _ _ _

____He manages to shrink his P.E shorts, until they’re small enough that Mr. Choi gives him a uniform warning (“Highly inappropriate, Mr. Na”). Even worse, every time he orders coffee, he somehow ends up with decaf. The third time it happens, Chenle makes a mental note to remind Jaemin to throw out the watch he’d taken from him, but then he sees Lucas’s friend, Sicheng, working behind the counter in Jaemin’s favourite coffee shop, and he begins to wonder whether Jaemin’s only bad luck is the fact that he has idiots for friends. His suspicions are confirmed when he catches Jeno in the middle of changing the combination on Jaemin’s locker._ _ _ _

____He doesn’t see much of Jisung outside of class. He’s not disappointed - just a little confused. It’s almost as if the boy doesn’t exist outside of chemistry class. Chenle never sees him at lunch, or by the school gates in the morning. He hopes that Jisung hasn’t decided that he hates Chenle after all. He doesn’t want to be stuck doing the whole chem project on his own, and he’s started getting used to walking around the school grounds without having to look over his shoulder._ _ _ _

____He’s not too concerned by that possibility. Jisung is perfectly civil during chemistry class. He’s the ideal desk-mate. He doesn’t talk too much or get Chenle into trouble, just occasionally slides over little notes, that have Chenle biting the inside of his cheek to keep from grinning. His favourite is a cartoon drawing of Mrs. Kim turning her students into piles of ash with the strength of her laser-eyed glare. He keeps the note tucked between the pages of his planner. It doesn’t mean anything, he just likes the sketch. Chenle tries not to give it too much thought._ _ _ _

____Jason, on the other hand, continues to occupy a substantial percentage of Chenle’s waking thoughts. Whenever he has some free time, he makes sure to message his friend. Jason is surprisingly enthusiastic about the prospect of Jisung and Chenle working together on the chem project. It confuses Chenle because he can’t think of a single instance when he’s said anything that shows Jisung in a positive light, but Jason says he’s big on second chances, so Chenle takes it in his stride._ _ _ _

____Or tries to._ _ _ _

____“I don’t get it,” Chenle complains to his friends at lunch on Friday. “Shouldn’t he at least be a little concerned about the idea of me spending so much of my time with another guy?”_ _ _ _

____“Should he be concerned?” Lucas asks with a wink._ _ _ _

____“About Jisung Park?” Chenle makes a face. “Ugh, no.”_ _ _ _

____“Maybe he’s not worried because you’ve made it clear enough that Jisung is the opposite of a threat?” Jaemin suggests. “Like an anti-threat.”_ _ _ _

____Chenle considers Jaemin’s words. “Maybe.”_ _ _ _

____“Or maybe he’s not interested in you like that?” Renjun says. “Is he even into guys?”_ _ _ _

____Chenle pauses. “I-I think so?”_ _ _ _

____Renjun shakes his head. “You need to find out for certain. Otherwise you’re going to get hurt.”_ _ _ _

____Jeno throws a balled up napkin at Renjun’s head. “You are such a downer.”_ _ _ _

____“I’m a realist” is Renjun’s only reply._ _ _ _

____Renjun’s words leave Chenle with a sinking feeling in his stomach._ _ _ _

____************************************************************_ _ _ _

____On Friday afternoon, Jisung takes the long way home from school. It’s a beautiful autumn day, and he loves the feeling of the crisp air stinging against his cheeks. It wouldn’t be long until winter arrived, and he wanted to take advantage of the perfect weather while he still could._ _ _ _

____As soon as he steps through the front door, he knows he’s not alone. There are voices coming from the kitchen. Jisung sighs. He quickly shucks off his coat, and resignedly makes his way into the kitchen._ _ _ _

____Mark and Donghyuck are sitting at the kitchen counter, sipping cups of tea._ _ _ _

____He gives them a pointed look. “Do you live here now?”_ _ _ _

____“Jisung!” his mother scolds, “Be nice to your friends.”_ _ _ _

____He knows that what she really means is ‘Be nice to your friends, because they’re the only ones you’ve got.’_ _ _ _

____“It’s ok. We’re used to him,” Donghyuck explains with a fond smile._ _ _ _

____Jisung’s mum sighs in defeat._ _ _ _

____“We’re going to go to my room now,” Jisung tells her._ _ _ _

____He looks expectantly at Mark and Donghyuck. “Well, come on then.”_ _ _ _

____When they get to Jisung’s tiny room, Donghyuck leaps onto the bed. Mark perches carefully on the edge of Jisung’s desk._ _ _ _

____“How’s the Chenle-situation coming along?” Mark asks. His voice is carefully casual._ _ _ _

____Jisung rolls his eyes, at Mark’s faux-nonchalance, but he can’t help the small smile that spreads across his face. “Actually, not that terrible. We’re project partners in chem.”_ _ _ _

____“How did you manage that?” Mark says, eyes wide with wonder._ _ _ _

____Jisung grins. “Stroke of luck, I suppose.”_ _ _ _

____Donghyuck pulls himself into a sitting position, and fixes Jisung with a curious look. “And how does he feel about it?”_ _ _ _

____“I think… he’s okay with it.”_ _ _ _

____“Are you assuming again?” Donghyuck demands, “- because you’re not great at that.”_ _ _ _

____“No, the words actually came out of his mouth. I think the apology really helped”_ _ _ _

____“Wow.” Jisung is a little offended at the sheer disbelief in Donghyuck’s tone._ _ _ _

____Mark pushes himself off the desk and settles down on the floor beside Jisung. “So what’s your next move?”_ _ _ _

____“I haven’t really thought about it,” Jisung admits. “I was just happy that we now can be in the same room without him wanting to run away.”_ _ _ _

____Donghyuck snorts. “Small victories.”_ _ _ _

____“Small but _important, _” Mark says firmly, glaring at Donghyuck. “Are you going to-”___ _ _ _

______Jisung’s phone pings. “Hold that thought,” he tells Mark, fishing the phone out of his pocket._ _ _ _ _ _

______The moment he reads the message, he starts to feel a little lightheaded._ _ _ _ _ _

______Donghyuck looks at him in concern. “What is it, Jisungie?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jisung doesn’t answer, just hands the phone to Mark._ _ _ _ _ _

______**Le-letsdothis:**  
Jason, I’m booored. Today at school my friends were talking about their favourite actresses and actors, and it got me thinking. What’s your ideal type? Ha ha______

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay tuned for more chensung being cute and doing dumb things.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone,
> 
> Sorry for the delay - work, life etc. has been happening. But here it is. Hope you enjoy.
> 
> Lots of awkward haha-ing and low-key freaking out on everyone's behalf. Renjun is basically a self-insert. Mark is too earnest for his own good. 
> 
> Slowly, slowly the story progresses. I think I underestimated the length of this thing, but I've got to be realistic, this is turning into a slow-burn. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Jisung hugs his knees to his chest. He leans forward, chin sinking between his kneecaps, and sighs. “Why is he asking that?” he says quietly. “What am I supposed to do?” There’s an almost imperceptible edge of panic in his voice, but Mark and Donghyuck know him too well to miss it.

Mark places a warm hand on Jisung’s back, tracing soothing circles between his shoulder blades. 

“Don’t freak out on us. It’s not a big deal,” Donghyuck says with a frown. “If you don’t want him to know that your ideal type is him, then just lie. Tell him you like tall, quiet women with natural black hair, and stony dispositions.”

Jisung shakes his head. “I can’t do that. What if it makes him sad?”

Donghyuck makes a disgusted face. “That’s revolting.”

“No, it’s sweet,” Mark corrects. He clears his throat. “I have an idea too,” he says slowly. “If you don’t want to lie, why not just tell him the truth?”

Jisung shrugs out from underneath the arm Mark has draped across his shoulders, and gapes at him. 

“No, no, just hear me out,” Mark continues quickly, taking in the horrified look on Jisung’s face. “I’m sure Chenle would appreciate your honesty and courage. What have you got to lose?”

It is the stupidest idea Jisung has ever heard. He opens his mouth, ready to tell Mark exactly how stupid he’s being, but Donghyuck beats him to it.

“Are you joking?” he asks, voice full of disbelief. “Because I refuse to believe that you’re as stupid as you sound right now. Confessing is the last thing that Jisung should be doing. His screechy little banshee has only just begun tolerating his presence in real life-” (Jisung is a little offended on Chenle’s behalf - he’s not a banshee, he’s just spirited.) “-and you think that he should waltz on over like “hey, guess what, I’ve been in love with you for the past year, and I’m pretty sure you’re into me as well, except you don’t realise it, let’s date”?” Donghyuck rolls his eyes. “Yeah, that’s going to go over well.”

“But-” Mark tries to protest, but Donghyuck is having none of it. 

“No,” he says firmly, cutting Mark off. “It’s a dumb idea.” He gives Mark a pointed look. “Remember that conversation we had about the importance of timing? _This_ is one of those situations where timing is everything.” The look that passes between Donghyuck and Mark has Jisung frowning in confusion, but after a beat the tension clears and Mark nods. 

“Good.” Donghyuck leans back against the wall behind the bed, satisfied that the message has finally sunk in. “Because I won’t have you ruining Jisung’s chances, with dumb things like ‘honesty’.”

“I find it concerning that you have so much contempt for being honest,” Mark mutters, almost to himself.

Donghyuck just sticks out his tongue at his best friend.

Jisung smiles at the exchange. He’s touched by Donghyuck’s enthusiastic support for his cause. A little confused, because he’s always thought him pretty indifferent about the Chenle-campaign. But mostly touched. 

Donghyuck catches him staring. He must see the warmth in Jisung’s eyes, because he crosses his arms in front of his chest, and scowls. “I hope you don’t misunderstand this as me actually caring about what happens with you and your radioactive cockatoo. Because I don’t. At all.”

Jisung’s smile grows wider. He pulls himself onto the bed and throws his arms around Donghyuck. “You do care.” His face is tucked against the crook of Donghyuck’s shoulder, so the words come out muffled.

“No,” Donghyuck insists. “I don’t. But we are the ones who will have to put up with you if Chenle breaks your fragile little heart. So really, just looking out for number one.” 

“And number two over there,” he adds as an afterthought, gesturing to Mark who’s still sitting on the floor. 

Jisung shakes his head. “Nope.” His fingers tightly grip the fabric of Donghyuck’s shirt, pulling him in even closer. “Thank you for caring,” he says softly.

“I don’t,” Donghyuck says again, but he doesn’t pull out of Jisung’s embrace, which is as good as an admission, as far as Jisung is concerned.

* * *

Chenle is not hiding. It would be ridiculous for him to be hiding from an inanimate object. He had simply felt an overwhelming need to jump into the shower the second that he sent his message to Jason, abandoning his phone in his bedroom. It was a complete coincidence, and had nothing to do with the fact that he couldn’t bear to be in the same room as his phone. 

Or so Chenle tries to tell himself. 

But when the water starts to run cold, and his fingers start to grow pruny, and his brother starts to bang angrily on the bathroom door, Chenle has to face the facts. 

The truth is that he’s afraid. It’s a hard thing for him to admit because he’s not often afraid. Yeah, he’s afraid of spiders, and horror movies, and doctor’s make him break out in a cold sweat, but this is different. He’s never particularly cared about what other people might think of him. He’s never had a problem with surrounding himself with the right kind of people - those who genuinely enjoyed his company and liked him for who he was. Everyone else was free to think what they wanted. 

This was so new to him. He’d always lived his life believing people were free to take him or leave him, but until now, he’d never wanted a specific person to choose him so much. 

He knows he can’t hide in the shower forever, but he’s a coward. He’s doesn’t want to leave the safety of the bathroom, not when everything could unravel so easily. As he sees it, right now he’s in a Schrodinger's cat situation - Jason is both interested in him, and not interested in him. It’s a tantalising place of possibility, and the bathroom door is the only thing keeping reality at bay. Chenle is afraid - _so afraid_ \- that he’s not strong enough or brave enough to deal with the consequences (the rejection) of his message.

But it is time, he decided finally. 

Chenle takes a deep breath and steps out of the shower. 

This was all Renjun’s fault, he thinks to himself as he begins furiously towelling himself off. And if things went badly, Renjun would be suffering alongside Chenle. He’d be the one forced into endless marathons of Back to the Future (just the first movie - the best one - over and over), stroking his hair and feeding him chocolates. He’d make Renjun introduce him to his cousin, Taeyong, so that Chenle could have someone else to pine over. Like the hair of the dog, or something like that. He’d spend hours composing poetry about Taeyong’s face (and butt) and make Renjun listen to it. Yes, Renjun would come to regret his actions. 

The thought of Renjun’s bleak future cheers him up just enough that he finds the strength to pull on his clothes. He catches a glimpse of himself in the fogged up mirror. The green in his hair is already fading, but his mouth is a line of grim determination. 

He can do this. 

He rests his forehead against the doorframe, and counts down from ten, then he cracks open the door.

Chenle is pushed backwards, as his brother barrels past him. “Took you long enough,” he barks. “I don’t even want to know what you were doing in there for so long.”

The door slams shut.

Chenle makes a rude gesture in his brother’s direction, then makes his way slowly towards his bedroom. 

When he slips inside, his phone is lit up like a beacon. It has this weird glitch where the screen won’t turn off after he gets a notification, so the message could have arrived any time from a few seconds ago, to right after he’d run for the safe haven of the shower.

His legs carry him forward almost without thought. He’s afraid, but also curious? hopeful? He’s not quite sure. All he knows is that the glow of his phone is calling to him. He’s going to kick himself if it’s not a message from Jason at all, but a meme from Lucas.

He picks up his phone, and looks down at the brightly lit screen. 

His stomach tightens. It’s not Lucas.

Slowly, he keys in his passcode, and swipes open the message. 

**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
Ha ha, I don’t really know. But I guess, maybe someone who complements me, who brings out the strengths in me? That makes me sound selfish, doesn't it? :p But I want to do that for the other person as well. Of course, they need to be a good person - not necessarily over-the-top nice - but good. And we have to get along well, and enjoy our time together, because otherwise, what is the point? Ha ha I guess I don’t look for anything specific. It’s more like, when you know you know, if that makes sense?

Chenle frowns down at his phone. He’s not sure what he expected. The response is genuinely nice, sweet, and there’s nothing inherently wrong with it, but it’s just _so vague_. It’s so incredibly vague, that it makes Chenle pitch his phone onto his bed in frustration. 

He makes it about two minutes before he’s scrambling for his phone, wracking his brain for a response. 

He can’t help himself.

Chenle starts typing. He throws his friends under the bus (names changed of course), telling Jason about Jeno and Jaemin and their weird back and forth, and how Lucas’s ideal type is himself. He’s midway through composing his message, when a new text bubble pops up on screen.

Chenle almost drops his phone. 

**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
I think I’d also like it if he had a nice laugh. The louder the better.

* * *

Chenle hasn’t stopped smiling in days.

“Can you stop doing that, you look deranged,” Jeno informs him, through a mouthful of noodles.

“Nope.” Chenle says, lips popping on the second syllable. “I’m happy, deal with it.”

Renjun sighs. “Stop reading into it. It’s a coincidence. He doesn’t even know what your laugh sounds like. And if he did, he’d run for the hills.”

Jaemin reaches out to ruffle Renjun’s hair. “Ah, there’s our Debbie Downer.”

“Negative Nancy,” Lucas adds.

Renjun shrugs. “I’m just your friendly local reality-check.”

“It’s okay, Renjun,” Chenle says, taking a swig from his water bottle. “Do your worst. Today, nobody can drag me down.”

Jeno blinks. “Did you just quote One Direction at us?”

Chenle grins. 

He did and he’s not ashamed.

* * * 

“You’re in a good mood,” Jisung observes when Chenle slides into his seat in chemistry.

Chenle smiles. “I am. Thanks for noticing.”

“It’s hard not to.”

Chenle’s smile falters. “What’s that supposed to mean?” he says flatly. 

Jisung’s eyes widen in surprise. “It doesn’t mean anything,” he says quietly. Jisung turns silent, as he slumps back in his seat. His narrow shoulders droop, and he seems to deflate. 

Chenle shrugs, and starts to pull his books from his backpack. If Jisung didn’t want to talk, that was fine with him. 

But then the chair beside him creaks, as Jisung turns on him. “Why do you always do that?” he asks. The words are calm, but there is a firmness in them that demands an answer. “You’re trying so hard to misinterpret my words and my intentions, that it’s almost funny. And I don’t know if you’re that paranoid with everyone or whether I’m just special, but it needs to stop.”

Chenle blinks. “It’s just you.” He sounds dazed to his own ears.

“Well, I’ve had enough,” Jisung says, “so cut it out.” He gives off a huff of frustration, and his fringe falls across his eyes. He looks instantly younger. “I thought we were getting along, but it’s almost like you want us to be fighting all the time. Sometimes I don’t understand you at all.”

Chenle laughs weakly. “I don’t _want_ to fight with you. It’s just-” he pauses to collect his thoughts, “- easier? I’m so used to it that sometimes I forget we’re not doing that anymore. And I have to say, it feels a little strange to go so long without fighting. I can’t quite believe it, and I guess, I’m just waiting for the other sock to drop.”

“Shoe,” Jisung corrects quickly. “The other shoe to drop.” He claps a hand over his mouth, eyes full of horror. “Sorry, I didn’t mean-” Jisung stutters.

Chenle raises a hand to stop him. “It’s fine. I’m always looking to improve my Korean.”

“Your Korean is great.”

Chenle’s cheeks heat. “It’s just okay.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” Jisung admonishes. 

Jisung hesitates. His adam’s apple bobs in his throat, and his brown eyes are warm. Chenle hates himself for noticing. “This is new for me too,” he says. “But I like it - us getting along.” He pauses, uncertainty creeping onto his face. “So maybe you could dial down the paranoia a bit, and we could continue doing that?”

Chenle groans. “God, you’re nice. I hate that.” 

Jisung frowns.“You hate that I’m nice?”

Chenle nods. “Yes. Because if you’re nice, that makes me the asshole.”

“Um…”

“It’s ok, you can say it.”

“You were being an asshole?” Jisung tests out the words, glancing nervously at Chenle.

Chenle pats his arm. “Very good. Now everytime I overreact, you should tell me. We have to nip this in the bud before it gets out of hand.”

“It’ll be my pleasure,” Jisung says solemnly. 

Chenle grins. “Maybe we’ll even implement a rewards system. Every time I’m an asshole, you get a sticker. Five stickers and I treat you to ice cream.”

“Chocolate?”

“Any flavour you want.”

“I’m going to get so fat,” Jisung says happily, eyes crinkling.

“Hey! have a little faith in me,” Chenle swats playfully at Jisung’s arm.

“You’ve got to prove yourself first.”

“Don’t get cheeky with me.”

Jisung is about to respond, when Mrs. Kim walks in and silence falls over the classroom. Chenle is a little disappointed he doesn’t get a chance to hear Jisung’s reply.

Mrs. Kim orders them to open their textbooks to page 156. When she turns towards the whiteboard, Chenle takes the opportunity to push a note across the table.

_Wait for me after class, we need to set up a time to work on the project. Ice-cream will be provided as a gesture of good will :) ___

__From the corner of his eye, Chenle sees Jisung’s lips curve into a smile._ _

__* * *_ _

__**Le-letsdothis:**  
I think I might be a mean person._ _

__**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
What? Where is this coming from?_ _

__**Le-letsdothis:**  
Jisung Park, of all people, made me realise it. Maybe you should abandon me and be friends with him instead D:_ _

__**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
You’re ridiculous. People like you can’t be replaced that easily_ _

__**Le-letsdothis:**  
You’re making me blush_ _

__**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
You’re just easily flattered_ _

__**Le-letsdothis:**  
Only by those who matter_ _

__Chenle regrets that last message almost immediately, but it’s too late to do anything but wait._ _

__It doesn’t take more than a few minutes for Jason to respond._ _

__**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
Guess who’s blushing now, you asshole_ _


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick update this time. 
> 
> What can I say? I was inspired by Jisung's dumb face during that life chart show, when he says he wishes Chenle life will look like his life graph. It was disgusting and I fully recommend checking that out on youtube if you haven't already, then discuss in the comments.

“Sicheng says he saw you and Jisung Park eating ice-cream together in park after school,” Renjun announces, as he plops down into the empty seat beside Chenle.

“Sicheng needs to mind his own business,” Chenle retorts.

Jeno looks at him, a puzzled expression on his face. “Did you lose a bet or something? You hate Jisung.”

Chenle sighs. “You know we’re partners for that chem project. And it was just apology ice-cream. It doesn’t mean anything.”

“Another apology?” Jaemin asks sympathetically. “What did he do this time?”

“He didn’t do anything.”

Lucas tilts his head, eyes wide. “Wait. Am I missing something? _You_ apologised to _him_?”

“Funny. Jisung made that same face when it happened. He was just as surprised as you are. Which is a little offensive. I do apologise occasionally.”

“Hmm, so it’s just Jisung now. No more ‘Jisung Park.” Lucas’s eyes are twinkling. “That’s interesting.”

Chenle sighs again, more deeply this time. His friends are exhausting. “It’s _nothing_. We’re in a truce. That’s all. He apologised to me. I apologised to him. I apologised to him _again_. Then I bought him ice-cream. Change of topic.”

Jeno nudges Jaemin beside him. “He’s very defensive isn’t he?” he whispers theatrically.

Jaemin smirks. “What’s that thing Shakespeare said about the lady protesting?”

“Not protesting. Not defensive. Just bored,” Chenle says. “Jisung and I are not fodder for your gossiping.”

“Jisung and I,” Lucas repeats, with a waggle of his brows.

“I think I need new friends,” Chenle mutters, spearing a piece of chicken with his fork.

“Well, Jisung Park is right over there,” Renjun says pointedly.

Chenle follows Renjun’s gaze. On the other side of the dining hall, Jisung is sitting at a table on his own. He has headphones in his ears, intently studying something on his phone. His lunch tray sits ignored. He wonders if Jisung is sitting alone because he wants to or because he has no other choice.

The thought makes Chenle’s heart sink a little. 

He makes a split second decision. 

Chenle grabs his phone off the table and shoves it into his pockets. He hoists his backpack over his shoulder, and picks up his lunch tray. “I guess there’s no time like the present. The sooner I find some replacement friends, the better.” He’s not sure he’s doing the right thing, and his heart hammers in his chest, but Chenle injects as much confidence into his voice as he can.

His words are met with four identical expressions of surprise. 

It’s almost funny. He grins at his the shock on his friend’s faces. “I’ll be back once you four learn when to drop a subject,” he says, keeping his voice carefully casual.

He turns his back on his friends.

“You’re not helping your case, Chenle,” Renjun calls out after him.

Chenle ignores him, and starts making his way across the cafeteria. The walk feels endless, and he can’t stop second-guessing himself. He and Jisung had had fun on Tuesday afternoon, planning out the project, and grabbing ice-cream afterwards, but they weren’t actually friends. Maybe this was crossing the line. 

Chenle tries to shake off the doubt that had begun to creep in. This didn’t mean anything. He was just messing with his friends, and if it turned out that his primary motivation was that he wanted to do something nice for Jisung Park, nobody had to know that but him.

There’s a moment of hesitation right as he approaches Jisung’s table, but Chenle pushes through it, stiffening his shoulders, as he takes those final steps.

The sudden clatter of Chenle’s plastic tray against the metal table top, makes Jisung startle. His head jerks up so abruptly, his headphones are yanked out of his ears.

“Sorry,” Chenle says as he slides into the seat across from Jisung. He gives the younger boy an apologetic smile. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Jisung stares at him, lips parted in surprise. “What are you doing here?”

“My friends are giving me a headache.”

“So you decided to come sit with me?”

Chenle flushes. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. “Um. I can leave if you want...” he says, trailing off awkwardly.

“No,” Jisung says quickly, with an emphatic shake of his head. “That’s not what I meant. I’m just - I’m surprised, that’s all.” 

“Well, I just saw you over here, sitting by yourself and I thought -”

“You felt sorry for me,” Jisung fills in flatly. The crease between his eyebrows grows deeper.

Chenle cringes. “No, I mean yes - but that’s not the only reason.” Chenle struggles to get the right words out. He wishes Jisung spoke Mandarin. “Mostly, I came over here because I wanted to. Tuesday was fun, and my friends are being more annoying than usual, so I thought I could annoy you into snapping at me, so that you’d have to be the one to buy the ice-cream next time.”

Jisung’s face clears. He scrunches his nose. “I don’t think that was part of the agreement.”

“Hidden clauses,” Chenle says. “You’ve always got to read the fine print.”

Jisung frowns. “There was no print,” he points out.

“First rule of friendship: Don’t point out flaws in my logic.”

Jisung’s eye grow wide. “Friendship?” he repeats slowly.

Chenle shrugs. “Might as well. When you’re not being terrible to me, you’re not half bad.”

“Thanks, I guess?”

A silence stretches between them. It’s weird and loaded, and Chenle scrambles for something to say. In the end, he settles for the truth. He wrinkles his nose. “This is weird isn’t it?”

Jisung lets out a sigh of relief. “A bit. I thought it was just me.”

“It’s okay though. Things always feel awkward at the beginning,” Chenle smiles. “Sorry for crashing your alone time,” he adds.

“It’s fine. I don’t mind,” Jisung says. 

It sounds genuine, so Chenle takes the opportunity to scoot closer to Jisung. He leans over to glance at Jisung’s phone. “What were you watching anyway?”

Jisung squirms under Chenle’s question. The skin of his neck turns splotchy. 

“It’s okay. I won’t judge,” Chenle says encouragingly, knocking his shoulder against Jisung’s.

Jisung’s face flames. “Um. Just kpop covers,” he says quietly, not meeting Chenle’s eyes.

“That’s cool. I didn’t know you liked kpop.” Jisung hadn’t really struck him as a kpop fan, but then again, Chenle didn’t know all that much about him.

“I don’t _not_ like it. But honestly, I’m really more interested in the dance part of it,” Jisung admits.

“Oh,” Chenle says. “Do you dance?” He’s letting curiosity get the better of him. Given how reluctant Jisung is to talk about the subject, he should probably just drop it, but he can’t help it. From across the cafeteria, he had seen how seriously Jisung had been studying his phone screen, and that intensity intrigues him.

“A little,” Jisung admits.

Chenle is having trouble picturing it. Jisung is tall and thin, with long arms and legs, like a colt or a baby deer. “Are you any good?”

Jisung ducks his head, “I’m not terrible.”

Suddenly, Chenle desperately wants to see him dance, to see if once again his perceptions about Jisung Park are as far away from reality as possible, but he can see that this dance thing is too important for Jisung to share with just anyone, so he lets it alone.

“Cool,” Chenle says casually. He can see Jisung’s cheeks growing brighter by the second. He needs to change the subject before the boy combusts. “I sing a little.”

Jisung raises a brow. “A little? I’ve seen you in the school musical. You’ve got the voice of an angel.”

It’s Chenle’s turn to blush. “Shut up. I’m just okay.”

“I think you’re slightly better than okay. My friend Donghyuck was in the musical with you a few years back, and he was so worried that you were going to come for his part.”

Chenle blinks. “I’m sorry. Donghyuck, the lead?”

Jisung laughs at Chenle’s shell-shocked expression. “Yes. He said he was so glad that you could barely speak Korean, otherwise he would have been in trouble.” Jisung winces the moment the words leave his mouth. “I probably shouldn’t have said that. It makes him sound awful, but I promise he’s pretty harmless.”

“It’s okay. Sounds a lot like my friend Renjun.”

“Not Huang Renjun?”

“That’s the one.”

Jisung cocks his head to the side. He looks like a confused baby chick. “But he looks so innocent.”

“Looks can be deceiving,” Chenle says darkly. “He’s the scariest of all my friends.”

“Best not cross him then?”

Chenle has a flashback to the previous year when he’d found Renjun’s diary, and thought it was a good idea for him and Lucas to read (and laugh at) Renjun’s love poetry. He still couldn’t look at a couplet without breaking into a cold sweat. “I wouldn’t recommend it.”

He’s about to tell Jisung exactly how terrifying Renjun could be, when the bell rings, signalling the end of lunch. 

Chenle frowns at his watch. Lunch couldn’t possibly be over already. It felt like his break had only just begun. But his new watch doesn’t lie.

Jisung is already stacking his and Chenle’s trays on top of one another. He swings his own backpack over one shoulder than reaches for Chenle’s. 

Chenle grabs for his bag. “Hey. What are you doing?”

Jisung shrugs. “We’ve got chem now.”

“Oh.” Chenle had forgotten. “But still- you don’t have to do that,” he protests.

“It’s fine,” Jisung says. “You can take the trays.”

Chenle sighs, but picks up their lunch trays anyway. “I feel like right now you’re just showing off that you’re taller and bigger than me,” he grumbles.

“I’m just being helpful,” Jisung counters seriously. Then his face breaks into a cheeky grin. “But there’s no point in arguing with facts.”

Chenle kind of wants to hit him.

* * *

It’s kind of scary how quickly the initial awkwardness between him and Jisung dissipates. Chenle finds himself actually looking forward to chem class and their study sessions. He cleverly avoids mentioning Jisung and their budding friendship to the rest of his friends. He hadn’t heard the end of it after their little lunch ‘date,’ and he wasn’t keen on repeating the experience. It’s not that he was embarrassed by his new friend, only that he didn’t really want to share Jisung just yet. 

That thought sends a hot spiral of shame through his body, but he shakes it off. He was just trying to protect Jisung from his friends, who would tear into him like a pack of rabid wolves.

Within a week, he has Jisung’s number saved in his phone. Two weeks, and there’s an emoji by his name (a mouse, _obviously_ ). It’s spiralling so fast, it makes him dizzy. He hasn’t made a new friend in a long time, and it’s intoxicating, this feeling of learning something new every time they hang out.

He doesn’t remember feeling this way when he’d first met Renjun or Jeno, but maybe he had and it’s just been so long that his body has forgotten.

He’s sitting across from Jisung in the library after school on Thursday afternoon. Jisung is the picture of studiousness - forehead creased in concentration, pen hovering over his worksheet. He’s absentmindedly gnawing on his lip and Chenle isn’t staring.

Jisung looks up from his homework, and catches him looking. His lips curl into a small smile when he meets Chenle’s gaze.

The sight sends a jolt through Chenle’s body. It’s unnerving.

Jisung’s eyes turn questioning. It’s almost as if he can sense Chenle’s discomfort.

Chenle panics. “I’m hungry,” he blurts out.

Jisung’s eyebrows knit together. “Oh, I have a chocolate bar in my bag, it you want that?” He reaches to unzip the front pocket of his backpack.

Chenle reaches out a hand to stop him. “No,” he says quickly. Jisung is staring down at his hand an odd expression on his face. Chenle follows his gaze and almost yelps. His hand is still resting on top of Jisung’s larger hand. Shit. Shit. _Shit_. He pulls away, cheeks burning. “Let’s get real food,” he says, trying to cover up his embarrassment. His palm still tingles where it had made contact with Jisung’s skin. 

It’s so ridiculous he wants to laugh.

Jisung frowns. “You’re being weird,” he observes.

Chenle’s throat feels dry. “Low blood sugar,” he explains, voice tight.

Jisung nods, though Chenle can see that he’s not entirely convinced by Chenle’s explanation. “What are you in the mood for?”

* * *

“You don’t need much, do you?” Jisung says wryly. “I was expecting like galbi or something.”

They’re seated in Chenle’s favourite ramen restaurant, steaming bowls of soup in front of them. 

Chenle shrugs. “What can I say? I’m a simple man.”

Jisung snorts in disbelief. 

“Think what you will, but I don’t need much. Good food, okay company and I’m happy as a flan.”

“Clam,” Jisung corrects with a grin. “But wait, only okay?” he sniffs. 

“Don’t push it,” Chenle says, pointing his chopstick at Jisung for emphasis. Droplets of broth spatter the tablecloth. 

He’s still feeling a little off after the weird, stomach-swooping sensation he’d experienced back in the library, but now with a belly full of noodles, and an hour of Jisung’s gentle teasing he’s feeling slightly more himself. 

Maybe he _had_ just been hungry. 

The other possibility has him feeling slightly sick, so he pushes it out of his mind, and tries to focus instead on how good it feels to have a stomach full of warm food. But the heaviness in his stomach makes him sleepy and a little reckless.

“It’s only because you’re in competition with ramen,” he can’t help adding. “Stephen Curry would just be ‘okay’ in comparison too. So you’re in pretty good company.”

Jisung’s eyes crinkle at Chenle’s words. “Thanks.” He pauses. “It’s getting kind of late…,” he says reluctantly, “Should I walk you home?”

Chenle considers it. “I was just going to take the bus,” he admits. Jisung’s smile falls slightly at that (or he might be imagining things). It makes his stomach do the strange lurching thing again. Chenle hesitates for a second, but then the words are out of his mouth before he has a chance to stop them. “But walking off all this ramen might not be a bad idea.”

Jisung nods. “Let’s go then,” he says, gesturing to the door. His brown eyes are so warm that Chenle feels almost feverish. 

He must be coming down with something. 

That’s the only acceptable explanation.

* * *

Chenle is shovelling rice into his mouth when Renjun drops his tray in front of him.

“Sicheng says he saw you and Jisung Park eating ramen together yesterday,” Renjun says proudly.

Chenle drops his head in his hands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How did I do? Tell me what you loved/hated etc. etc.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So… it’s been a while. I’m sorry for not updating in so long, but this chapter has been really hard for some reason, and it’s also Bad Brain Season™.
> 
> I’m still not satisfied with this chapter, but it is twice the length of previous chapters, so depending on how you look at it, there’s a possible silver lining there. Also I can’t look at it for a second more or I'm going to combust. 
> 
> Useless chapter summary: NCT Dream has a lot of fake sisters, breakdowns all around, and Lucas cries during animal movies.

"Could you put that down for like five seconds?” Jaemin complains. “Your friends are feeling neglected.” 

Like most afternoons, they’re gathered in Lucas’s living room, with its off-white walls, the huge flat-screen that takes up the better part of the back wall, and the familiar scent of Lucas’s heavy cologne which clings to everything. 

Chenle looks up from his phone, a guilty expression on his face. “Sorry.”

“Keep that up and you’ll give yourself carpal tunnel,” Renjun says darkly. He’s sitting cross-legged on the floor, back pressed against Jeno’s calves.

“Our little ray of sunshine,” Jeno says fondly, reaching forward to ruffle Renjun’s hair. “Sometimes it’s hard to believe that you’re younger than Lucas.”

Renjun shrugs. “It’s part of my natural charm.” He leans into Jeno’s touch just a fraction, but it’s enough that Chenle’s suspicions about his friends’ unconventional relationship grow marginally stronger. If he were in Jeno’s place, he would have probably lost an arm by now.

“Well, I’m just young at heart,” Lucas says proudly.

“That’s usually code for “I’m an idiot,” Jaemin mutters. 

“What did you just say?” Lucas says sharply, rounding on Jaemin.

“Um… I love you?”

“Thought so,” Lucas says with a glare.

“Anyway, back to the issue at hand. Chenle is officially banned from using his phone tonight,” Jaemin continues. “This rule will be strictly enforced.”

“That’s not necessary,” Chenle protests.

“Since you can’t control yourself, you will now surrender your phone,” Jaemin says seriously.

Chenle hugs his phone protectively to his chest. “Nooo.”

Jaemin sticks out his hand. “Give it here.” 

Chenle sighs, but hands over his phone. It’s a lost cause anyway - Jaemin’s expression invites no further discussion. “Why doesn’t anyone else have to endure this indignity?” he grumbles. “You all have your phones.”

“Because we have discipline and self-control,” is Lucas’s smug reply.

Chenle sticks out his tongue at him.

Jeno rolls his eyes. “I’m sure your boyfriends can survive one night without your constant texting.”

“They’ll probably even thank us for this,” Renjun adds.

Chenle chooses to ignore Renjun. “Boyfriends?” he says flatly. “What boyfriends? I don’t even have one single boyfriend.” It comes out sounding a little bitter, but he can’t help it.

“Well then start acting like it,” Lucas says. “It’s time for us single guys to get a little crazy.” 

Lucas’s words have an immediate effect. Jeno coughs, Renjun’s ears turn crimson, and Jaemin suddenly becomes very interested in the pattern of the carpet. Chenle chokes back a laugh. He’s had his suspicions for a while, but now he is as sure as he could be without the three of them actually telling him that there was something to them. 

At first he’d thought it was Jaemin and Jeno, trying and failing to hide their relationship from the rest of the group. But then he’d noticed how Renjun was always with them, how they seemed to want him around all the time, how they could get away with more than most before Renjun finally snarked at them, and he couldn’t ignore the soft way they all looked at one another. He doesn’t understand it, and it’s not something he’d ever want for himself, but he loves his friends and he feels suddenly protective because it’s obvious they’re not ready for the thing between them to go public. 

He clears his throat, and jumps in before Lucas has enough time to process their friends’ weird behaviour. “Alright. Let’s go. Any ideas?”

After a lengthy (and loud) discussion, they finally settle on a friendly (brutal) game of soccer, followed by black bean noodles by the river. After all that, Renjun’s ears are still flushed pink, and Chenle can’t help but bait him a little. He might be nice, but he’s not a saint. “What’s better that this?” Chenle says with a smirk. “Just guys being dudes. Right, Renjun?”

Lucas frowns in confusion, but the furious expression on Renjun’s face sends a thrill of fear down Chenle’s spine.

But as they say, you only live once.

* * *

“I never thought I’d live to see the day when you complain about Chenle texting you too much,” Mark observes.

“I’m not complaining,” Jisung protests. “But it’s giving me whiplash. It’s so hard to keep everything straight. I keep forgetting who is having what conversation with him. And I keep worrying I’ll send the wrong message from the wrong account. This secret identity thing is harder than you realise.”

Mark frowns. “Maybe this is a sign that it’s time to end it?” he suggests. “He likes you well enough now, so maybe you should just tell him?”

“I know, I know,” Jisung says, waving off Mark’s words. “And I will.” He pauses. “But not just yet.”

Mark sighs. “It’s only going to get harder, Jisung.”

The anger flares so suddenly it almost knocks the breath from his lungs. 

“Do you think that I don’t know that?” Jisung bursts out. “Do you think that I like this? Because I don’t. I hate it.” He’s getting a little tired of the warnings, and the unsolicited advice, when neither of them could possibly understand how this feels because they’ve never been in a situation like this before. He’s tired of people telling him he’s letting things get out of hand. He isn’t stupid - he knows all that. “I hate it so much. But I don’t know what to do about it. I hate not knowing whether he’s thinking about Jason, while he’s with me.”  
He takes a sharp breath. “I know we’re the same person, but he doesn’t know that and I don’t know how I’m supposed to compete with myself.”

Mark’s eyes widen in surprise, but Jisung can’t stop even if he wanted to. He’s kept things bottled up for too long, and they’ve started festering. 

“And if I do tell him, chances are he’d hate us both, for the lying and the evasions. He’ll probably think that this was all just some kind of game for me, and he’ll never speak to me again. As Jisung, as Jason, as anyone.” Jisung’s limbs start to prickle. He’s breathing too fast.

“I don’t think I could handle that,” he finishes in a small voice. He pulls his knees to his chest, and buries his face in crook of his elbow.

Donghyuck sits down on the bed beside Jisung. “Breathe,” he says, giving Jisung’s shoulder a comforting squeeze. The weight of his hand eases the tightness in Jisung’s chest. “You are obsessing,” Donghyuck tells him. 

“Maybe,” Jisung admits quietly. “I just like him a lot.”

“We know you do,” Mark says gently. “And we’re not trying to pressure you. We just want to help.”

“Even if we’re bad at it sometimes,” Donghyuck says with a deliberate look in Mark’s direction. “We just want you to be happy.”

“Stop,” Jisung sniffs. “You’re being sappy and disgusting. It’s weird.”

Donghyuck rolls his eyes. “You’re having a mini-breakdown. I think that calls for sappy and disgusting.”

Jisung looks down at his knees, suddenly ashamed. This whole shitty situation wasn’t their fault. “Sorry.”

“Hey, you’ve got nothing to be sorry for,” Mark says firmly. “But maybe - and no pressure here because I’m the cool-dad - maybe you need to start confronting your feelings a little. Repressing them clearly isn’t doing you any good.”

From the corner of his eye, Jisung sees Donghyuck mouth the word ‘dad?’ in Mark’s direction. Mark responds with a shrug. They were so weird sometimes, but they meant well.

Jisung carefully considers Mark’s words. While he’s definitely not ready to blow the whistle on the whole Jason thing, Mark was right. Hiding the fact that he was in love with Chenle wasn’t doing him any good, and no matter how hard he tried, he was and would always be Jisung Park. There was no changing that. 

But that meant another thing was also true - he wasn’t in competition with Jason, because there was no Jason. 

There was only Jisung and Chenle. 

He needed to put Jason out of his mind and focus on living as Jisung. 

And there was no reason why Jisung Park couldn’t have a crush on Chenle, and absolutely no reason why he couldn’t start acting on it. 

* * *

“I can’t believe you haven’t even finished Section 3,” Jeno says incredulously. School has just let out, and they’re walking to the convenience store - Jeno owes him a strawberry yoghurt, and Chenle’s going to collect. It has started to drizzle, and the wind whips the hair off Chenle’s forehead. 

“It’s a long project,” Chenle says defensively, pulling the hood of his jacket low over his head.

Jeno raises an eyebrow. “You meet like three times a week. Henry and I see eachother once a week, and we’re on track. We completed section 8 last Tuesday.” 

“Yeah, that’s because you got paired with the boy genius. All I got is Jisung Park.”

“Jisung is smart.”

“He _is_ smart,” Chenle agrees. “But he’s not that good at chemistry. Which is weird considering it’s his favourite subject.”

“Since when?” Jeno says, with a surprised look on his face. “I always thought he liked P.E best. His mum always complains about that every time she comes over to have tea with my mum.”

Chenle gives Jeno a pitying look. “I’m pretty sure you’re wrong there.”

Jeno rolls his eyes. “If you say so. But if he likes chemistry so much, why are you behind?”

“I don’t know. He’s distracting. We talk. We go get food.”

“He’s _distracting_?” Jeno says suggestively.

Chenle shoves him lightly. “I didn’t mean it like that. I’m not the least bit interested in Jisung Park - he has a bowl cut. Stop reading into things.”

“He hasn’t had a bowl cut in years. Don’t pretend like you haven’t noticed,” Jeno counters. “Also that’s probably your problem - talking and eating out doesn’t sound much like studying. It sounds like dating.”

“We do those things all the time. I guess we’re dating now.”

Jeno wrinkles his nose. “Gross.”

“Wow. Thanks.”

“You know what I mean. That would basically be incest at this point.” He puts an arm around Chenle’s shoulder. “And it’s not that same thing at all. You get weird when you talk about him.”

“The same kind of weird that Jaemin and Renjun get around you?” Chenle asks innocently.

Jeno freezes. “We are not talking about that.”

“We should,” Chenle says, suddenly serious. “You can. With me. I hope you know that.”

“Of course I know,” Jeno says. “And I will. We all will. But as much as I appreciate that, I’m starting to feel like this is just a clever evasion tactic so we don’t have to talk about Jisung.”

It wasn’t and they both know it, but Chenle can take a hint. He forces a laugh, “Busted.”

“I was actually going to say that the way you get when you talk about Jisung reminds me of the way that you talk about that online guy. Jason, was it? But honestly, you made it worse for yourself, because if you’re comparing your feelings for Jisung, to me, Jaem and Renjun, then you’re further gone than we thought.”

It’s as much of a confession as Chenle is likely to get, but Jeno’s words hit on another problem that’s been eating away at Chenle for the past few weeks. 

Chenle takes a deep breath. He’s not entirely sure that he’s ready to admit it to anyone - not sure he’s ready to admit it to himself either. But Jeno trusted him enough to almost-confirm the situation with Jaemin and Renjun, and he’s one of the first friends that Chenle made in Korea, and the one least likely to make a big deal out of things. If he was going to tell anyone, Jeno seems like a good choice.

Chenle slows his steps. “Ok, let’s say that I’ve noticed that he doesn’t have a bowl cut. And that he has long legs and a cute smile,” he says carefully. “And let’s say that I really enjoy spending time with him.”

“Ok,” Jeno says casually. “So hypothetically, what is the problem?

“Well, apart from the fact that he’s most likely not into guys, and even if he is, he’s probably not into me specifically. There’s also the whole Jason thing.”

“Ah.”

“It kind of feels like I’m being disloyal, even though I haven’t done anything. I’m certain that I know and care about Jason, but at the same time even though I don’t know Jisung as well, I really like what I do know about him and there’s so much potential because he feels so easy to love. He’s also nice and funny in a weird way, and sometimes when I look at him, it feels like my stomach has dropped right out of my body,” Chenle says quietly, his cheeks heating. “He also smells really good,” he adds, hiding his red face behind his hands.

Jeno laughs - but it’s kind and Jeno’s gentle smile is so encouraging, that Chenle feels he made the right choice in who to confess to. “I feel so shallow thinking those things, because for all I know, Jason might make me feel the same way, and does it even matter anyway when we have an emotional connection? But then again, Jisung also makes me laugh, and we’ve clicked surprisingly quickly considering our past. But also I’ve known Jason properly for longer. It’s all just a huge mess. I like them both, and I feel bad about it, even though I’m not even dating either one. Sometimes they even kind of blend together in my mind.” Chenle sighs. “I’m an awful person.”

“You are not an awful person. You’re just confused,” Jeno assures him. “And that’s ok. But I do think that you need to find out where you stand with both of them. I know you like them both, but you can’t go on like this forever. It’s not fair to you.”

“Also there’s nothing wrong with taking physical attraction into account,” Jeno adds. “It doesn’t make you shallow. It makes you human.”

“What if I make the wrong move, and mess everything up?” Chenle asks softly. 

“Then you make it right, or you move on,” Jeno tells him. 

“It’s that easy, is it?”

Jeno shakes his head. “Not easy. But you can’t always avoid difficult things.”

“I can’t decide if that’s wise or depressing,” Chenle observes.

“Why can’t it be both?” Jeno says “But, no matter the outcome, you’ve still got us.” Jeno affectionately pats him on the back.

“I hate feelings,” Chenle grumbles.

“Sometimes they’re kind of nice,” Jeno tells him, and the warmth in his voice sends a current of jealousy through Chenle’s body. 

* * *

Apart from Chemistry class, Chenle doesn’t see Jisung all week. It’s not that he’s avoiding him, it’s just that he has a lot of homework, and he promised his mum that he’d clean out the bathroom, and it’s also Jaemin’s birthday soon, and he’s in charge of planning, so he simply hasn’t had any free time. 

Or maybe, he’s kind of avoiding Jisung.

He hates himself for it, but he just needs some time to sort through his mess of feelings, without the added distraction of Jisung’s height, and his face, and the stupidly adorable way that his eyes all but disappear when he laughs.

It doesn’t help though. He’s as confused as ever, and he finds himself missing Jisung which just adds to the problem. 

It’s enough to make him go a little crazy, so he’s relieved when the weekend rolls around, and he can slip into the familiar routine of movies, food, games, and (possibly) studying. 

“You look tired,” is the first thing out of Jaemin’s mouth when they meet up in front of the movie theatre on Saturday afternoon. It’s their tradition, started as a way of helping Chenle improve his Korean, that had become a permanent part of their weekend routine.

“Thanks,” Chenle says dryly, feeling suddenly exposed under Jaemin’s watchful gaze. 

Jaemin doesn’t miss anything - from the purple shadows ringing Chenle’s eyes, to the faded, wrinkled jumper he’d pulled out from under the bed that morning. “Is everything ok?”

“Of course,” Chenle says with forced cheerfulness. “Just tired. I stayed up a bit too late playing games last night.”

Jaemin gives him a disapproving look, but luckily he’s saved from the inevitable ‘your-body-is-a-temple’ lecture, by the arrivals of Renjun, Jeno and Lucas.

* * *

Chenle’s luck does not last long. 

“Chenle, we’ve already decided that we’re going to see the movie,” Jaemin says with a long-suffering sigh.

“But you know that I don’t like gory movies,” Chenle whines. 

“You mean that you’re scared of them,” Lucas corrects.

Chenle shoots him a withering glare. “I think we all know what I meant, Lucas.” 

“Listen,” Jaemin says, clapping a hand onto Chenle’s shoulder. “Why don’t you go and see that animated movie that you wanted to see so much, and we’ll go see _Hostel_ , then we’ll meet up for ramen afterwards. My treat.”

Chenle bristles at Jaemin’s soothing tone. “I am not a child,” he says, “And I don’t see why you have to go see that in the cinema - it’s an old movie. Ever heard of the internet?”

“I know you’re not a child,” Jaemin continues in that same irritating placating tone. “And you’re welcome to come see the movie with us, but if I’m completely honest, we’d all rather you didn’t.”

“Excuse me?”

“Last time you watched a slasher with us, you invited yourself over to Renjun’s house for a week because you were too scared to sleep alone.”

“I am not going through that again,” Renjun says firmly. There is a touch of fear in his eyes. “You are an active sleeper and I had bruises for weeks. Mr. Kang even took me aside because he thought I was having problems at school.”

“Fine,” Chenle huffs. He can’t argue with Renjun’s point - he’d seen the bruises himself. “But I’m not happy about this.” 

“It’s for the best,” Jaemin says apologetically, as he starts herding everyone toward the snack stand. 

Jeno buys Chenle a consolation popcorn, and Chenle’s irritation slowly begins to fade. He’s not one to hold a grudge, especially with the right incentive, and free food always makes him a better, more forgiving person. And he hadn’t really wanted to go see _Hostel_ anyway. 

“You could have played the sympathy card to get your way,” Jeno tells him, as he hands Chenle his extra large, extra buttery popcorn. “Jaemin would have gone for it. He’s soft.”

Chenle shrugs. “I know, but it wasn’t the right moment, and I didn’t really want to have to explain the whole thing to everyone when I myself have no clue what I’m feeling or what to do about it.” 

Jeno nods, then quickly changes the subject when he sees Lucas hovering nearby. “We’ll meet you back here in two hours. Ok?” 

“Ok,” Chenle agrees, waving Jeno off. 

Lucas appears beside him the moment Jeno walks off to join Jaemin and Renjun. “I will kill you if you tell anyone this, but make sure you bring tissues into the movie,” he says quietly, before hurrying to catch up with the rest of their friends, leaving Chenle staring dumbfounded at his retreating back.

* * *

Chenle enters the movie theatre, popcorn in one hand, large Coke in the other. The theatre is mostly empty - it was too late for the morning rush of families, and too early for everyone else. This makes choosing a seat an even greater challenge than usual. Either that or he’s just uncharacteristically indecisive these days.

He’s just about to give up and choose a seat at the very centre of the theatre, when he catches sight of a familiar figure slouching down the left aisle, a few metres in front of him.

He blinks in surprise. If his hands weren’t so full, he would have rubbed his eyes, because he can’t quite believe what he sees.

The universe had to be playing a huge cosmic joke on him. 

Before he can stop himself, he’s hurrying through an empty row of seats. “Park, is that you?” Chenle calls out in a loud whisper. He’s lucky that the theatre is mostly empty, so no one shushes him or throws dirty glares in his direction. 

Jisung freezes. He turns around slowly, caught like a deer in headlights.

Chenle half-jogs towards him.. “Surprised to see you here,” he says, looking up at Jisung with curiosity.

“I’m here with my younger sister,” Jisung blurts out.

Chenle frowns. “I didn’t know you had a sister.”

“I don’t,” Jisung says with a wince. “I don’t know why I said that.”

Chenle laughs. “Still as weird as ever.” He sounds more fond than he should, and Chenle can only pray that Jisung doesn’t notice.

Jisung gives him a tentative smile. “Mark said this movie was for babies, so when I saw you, I kind of panicked. Have to keep up appearances.” 

“Ah, of course - big bad Jisung Park,” Chenle teases. “Well, if you haven’t noticed, I’m here too, so there’ll be no judgement from me,” he says. “And if it makes you feel any better, I’m here because _my_ friends think I’m too much of a baby to watch a horror movie with them.”

Jisung snorts.

“They’re not wrong either,” Chenle admits, surprising himself. “Blood, sawing off limbs, eyeballs popping out -” he shudders. “Yeah, definitely not for me. I’d much rather see this one. It sounds cute.” 

Jisung smiles at Chenle’s admission. His eyes scrunch up into half moons, and butterflies erupt in Chenle’s stomach. He’s suddenly struck with the realisation that avoiding Jisung for the past week has had no effect. He’s made himself miserable, and missed out on a week of soft smiles and laughter - all for nothing. His thoughts still grow muddled the moment Jisung looks at him. 

It’s disconcerting, but now that he’s accepted that he might have some more than friendly feelings for his chem partner and ex-archnemesis, it’s not altogether unpleasant. 

It’s a harmless crush on a straight boy - a milestone in the life of any gay teen. He’d pine and wallow and then he’d get over it.

Jisung is still looking at him, and Chenle can feel his cheeks start to pink. He’s not usually shy, but a simple look from Jisung Park has him feeling warm all over. It’s kind of embarrassing, but he forces himself to hold Jisung’s gaze steady. Jisung looks away first, and Chenle fights to keep the triumphant smile off his face.

He might have an embarrassing crush on Jisung, but he was going to come out of it with his dignity intact.

But then Jisung looks at him again, and there’s a cautious smile playing about his lips, and all thoughts of pride and dignity go right out the window. “Do you maybe want to watch the movie together? I have popcorn.” It’s a little hesitant, like he’s still expecting Chenle to say no.

“So do I,” Chenle shrugs in what he hopes is a casual manner. “Does yours have poison in it?”

“No, just butter,” Jisung says dryly. “You didn’t warn me you’d be here, so unfortunately I didn’t come prepared.”

“What a shame,” Chenle says, matching Jisung’s tone. “But I guess you can never have too much popcorn.” 

“Very true,” Jisung says, and Chenle thinks he sounds almost relieved - though that might just be wishful thinking. 

Chenle follows Jisung to a pair of seats on the left side of the theatre. The entire row is empty and Chenle feels his heart rise in his chest at the thought of spending close to two hours in a darkened theatre sitting beside Jisung Park. 

He’s unusually nervous, though he has no reason to be. It’s _only_ Jisung, and it’s _only_ a movie, and he’s done this a thousand times with Jeno and Renjun and the rest of his friends. 

This was no different. 

He’s on the verge of low-level panic when he catches sight of Jisung’s annoyed expression when he folds himself into one of the seats, and the lack of legroom pushes his knees up to his chest. Instantly, the tension in Chenle’s body seems to fade into the background, and he fights to keep the smile off his face. 

“The downside of long legs,” Jisung says with a sigh.

Chenle loses the battle and grins. “I didn’t know there was one.”

“It’s really not all it’s cracked up to be. Aeroplanes are a nightmare.” 

“I still think a couple of extra inches would be great.” 

“You’ve already got a nice height though,” Jisung insists.

Chenle rolls his eyes. “If you say so.” He brushes off Jisung’s words. “Here-” he gestures to the armrest on Jisung’s left. “Push that up, and then put your legs on the seat. There’s plenty of room.”

“I don’t think that’s allowed,” Jisung says, but after giving the theatre a quick once-over, he drapes his legs across two adjoining seats. 

It’s an awkward position, and Jisung fidgets in his seat trying to get comfortable. There’s nowhere for him to rest his back. There’s an obvious solution to this problem - one that Jisung seems to be pointedly avoiding.

Chenle takes pity on him. “You can lean on me. If you want.” 

“Are you sure?” 

He is and he isn’t. It’s the most logical solution to Jisung’s discomfort, but Chenle’s not sure how he’s going to handle any part of Jisung’s body pressed against his. 

It’s going to be fine, he repeats to himself. He’s done this with Renjun a million times. He’s had Lucas’s head in his lap, and he’s held Jaemin in his arms when he cried. 

This was nothing. Friends did it all the time.

“Of course,” Chenle says brightly. 

Carefully, Jisung leans his back against the side of Chenle’s body, his upper body resting against Chenle’s arm and shoulder. Jisung is warm against him, and Chenle does his best not to breathe, afraid that it will give away the quickening of his heartbeat. 

Jisung leans his head back on Chenle’s shoulder, and Chenle tries to keep his muscles from tensing, forcing himself to relax.

“Better?”

“Much,” Jisung says happily. “Thanks.” 

“No problem.”

“Your shoulder is a bit pointy though,” Jisung adds playfully.

“You’re going to end up sitting on the floor,” Chenle says. 

Jisung says nothing, but Chenle feels him sigh. The exasperated sound has him sagging against Chenle. Jisung’s head is heavy against his shoulder, and Chenle can smell the clean shampoo-scent of his hair. 

Chenle swallows hard. It’s quiet and Jisung is so close. In a moment of panic he thrusts his bucket of popcorn under Jisung’s nose. “Popcorn?” he says in a strained voice. 

Jisung turns his head to look at Chenle. It doesn’t last more than a split second, but for Chenle it feels like an eternity. His cheeks grow hot.

Jisung doesn’t seem to notice. He reaches dig out a handful of popcorn, then pops a piece into his mouth, chewing loudly.

It should be off putting. 

It isn’t.

Chenle is in the middle of processing that concerning realisation, when Jisung pulls his own popcorn from where it’s wedged between his legs and the seat, and offers it to Chenle, with a cheeky grin. “Popcorn?”

Chenle is grateful for the dim light of the theatre, as the heat spreads down his neck. 

It doesn’t mean anything, he repeats to himself, as he accepts the popcorn. None of this means anything and he knows that getting his hopes up is a terrible idea. 

Too bad his stupid body is immune to logic. As the lights finally begin to darken, and the previews start, Chenle feels hyper-aware of Jisung’s presence by his side, his consciousness zeroed in on the points of contact where his body meets Jisung’s. The tight, breathless feeling in his chest only grows every time Jisung shifts against him, or nudges his shoulder to get his attention. 

But it’s fine. Jisung seems completely at ease, and he can’t decide whether he’s relieved that Jisung doesn’t pick up on his weirdness, or whether he wants to scream at him for being so oblivious. 

The movie passes slowly but without incident. He’s not entirely sure what the movie is about - thinks he might have missed a major plot point fixated as he is on Jisung’s warm body next to him - but at least he survived. Chenle 1, Universe 0.

When the credits roll, and the lights flood the cinema, Chenle breathes a sigh of relief. A darkened empty cinema is not the place to deal with your unrequited feelings. 

Chenle turns to Jisung, determined to hurry him out of the cinema as quickly as possible, but the sight of him makes Chenle’s stomach drop. “Are you crying?” Chenle asks, failing to keep the surprise out of his voice.

Jisung quickly wipes his eyes with the sleeve of his jumper. “No,” he says, but his voice breaks on the word, and he can’t hide his red-rimmed eyes. 

“It’s ok,” Chenle says evenly. “You’re not the only one. Lucas cried as well.” He pulls a pocket pack of tissues from his jacket, and hands it Jisung. He gives the younger boy an encouraging smile.“ He even told me to pack these.”

Jisung wipes at his face. “It was just so sad -” he sniffs, “- when the dog -” 

Chenle has no idea what he’s talking about, but Jisung looks like he’s about to start crying again, and Chenle’s body reacts before his brain has a chance to.

He opens his arms and pulls Jisung into a hug. Jisung stiffens, and Chenle is cursing himself because clearly he’s overstepped boundaries, but then Jisung’s body goes pliant and he tucks his face into the crook of Chenle’s shoulder. 

Chenle gently pats Jisung’s back. “You big baby”

“Shut up,” Jisung mutters against Chenle’s neck. The words come out muffled.

Chenle grins. He gives Jisung’s neck a final squeeze, before dropping his arms and pulling away. “Come on,” he says. He puts a light hand on Jisung’s elbow, and guides him towards the exit. “I’ll buy you a hot chocolate.”

Jisung frowns. “Why would you do that?”

Chenle’s heart skitters. “I just hate seeing people cry,” he says quickly. It’s not really a lie, but it isn’t the whole truth either.

“Hmm,” Jisung hums, and Chenle is relieved to see that the twinkle is back in his eyes. “Noted.”

“You’re going to abuse my weakness aren’t you?”

Jisung shrugs. “Not intentionally. But when I was younger, my babysitter, Kun, always said I was a big crier.”

Chenle shakes his head in exasperation. “You are unbelievable.”

Jisung smirks.

“And I’m going to be broke before the end of semester.”

Darkness flits across Jisung’s face, but almost instantly it’s replaced by a smile so bright, that Chenle is certain he must have imaged the shadows that touched Jisung’s eyes. “Let’s go,” Jisung urges him. He grabs for Chenle’s wrist and tugs him out of the theatre. 

It takes a few minutes for Chenle’s eyes to adjust after the dimness of the movie theatre, but Jisung seems to have no such problem, pulling him in the direction of the nearest coffee shop.

Chenle still has a whole 20 minutes before he’s supposed to meet up with his friends back at the cinema, and he intends to make the most of them. He sends Jisung to scout out an empty table, while he orders their drinks - hot chocolate for Jisung, and milky tea for himself.

He’s waiting at the side of the counter to collect his order when he feels his phone buzz in his pocket. He pulls it out, and swipes open the message from Renjun.

Chenle’s head jerks up in shock. He quickly scans the coffee shop but he doesn’t see a single familiar face.

_So, apparently you’re currently on a date with Jisung Park…_

Chenle stares at the screen in disbelief. 

What the fuck.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So… it’s been a while. Should I defend myself? Probably, but what can I say that hasn’t already been said before. Bad Brain Season continues etc, etc. But on the plus side, Chensung have been keeping us well supplied over the past few months. I love our babies. 
> 
> I’m not super thrilled with how this came out, so there might be some edits along the line, but it’s better than making everyone wait another three months....
> 
> This chapter is on the shorter side, because I’m trying to get back into writing, and nothing motivates like feedback of any kind, so please comment if you can. I had a plan for this chapter but scrapped it almost completely, and decided to let Chenle and Jisung just do their thing. So, love it/hate it let me know. This chapter features nosy Dreamies, Jisung trying to sabotage himself, teenage dramatics and angsting.

“You _really_ expect us to believe that it’s a complete coincidence that you and Jisung Park ended up at the same movie, after you’ve been making heart eyes at him all semester?” Renjun says scornfully. His arms are crossed, eyebrows drawn in a harsh line. This might have looked threatening if he didn’t have the build of a baby bird. 

Chenle pushes his plate away, and slumps down in his seat, glaring at Renjun. “Firstly, I have never made heart eyes at anyone in my entire life, and most definitely not at Jisung Park. And secondly, it doesn’t matter whether you believe it or not, it’s the truth. I didn’t plan to meet him there. It just happened. We’re not sneaking around like a pair of forbidden lovers. I’m not even into him like that.” 

“I’m pretty sure none of those things are true,” Lucas says, taking a swig from his bottle. The water dribbles down the side of his mouth. Chenle hopes he chokes on it. 

“And on the slim chance that it _is _true,” Jaemin says thoughtfully, “then fate is really trying to play matchmaker between the two of you."__

____

Chenle scoffs at that. “Oh yes, because Jisung Park is my destiny.” 

Renjun shrugs. “Your words, not ours.” 

Chenle drops his head in his hands and sighs deeply. “I hate every single one of you." 

Jeno pokes at his shoulder. “Hey, I haven’t said anything yet.” 

“Except Jeno,” Chenle amends. “The rest of you are the worst.” 

"We’d probably make _some_ kind of effort to be less annoying if you would just admit that there is something going on between you and Park.” Jaemin’s eyes are sparkling with mischief. “There’s no shame in that.” 

“Yeah,” Lucas agrees. “Even I can admit that he’s not hard on the eyes.” 

___Chenle stares at him._ _ _

___Lucas shrugs. “What? I’m straight, not blind.”_ _ _

___“Ooookay” Renjun says slowly, before rounding on Chenle. “Why don’t you look me in the eye, and tell me again how you absolutely don’t have a thing for Jisung Park? Maybe then we’ll believe you.”_ _ _

___Chenle gulps. He’s always been a terrible liar, and his friends know it. His face is expressive to a fault, every emotion clear as if every smirk and every twitch of his eyebrows came with closed captioning. A genuine face, his mum calls it. More like a traitorous face, Chenle thinks to himself, as he tries to school his features into something resembling disdain. It’s not going well - his face feels like it’s made of plastic. “I’m not the least bit interested in Jisung Park,” he says, and it sounds false even to his own ears._ _ _

___Renjun shakes his head. “You are the least convincing liar I’ve ever met,” he tells Chenle in Mandarin. It’s a small gesture but Chenle appreciates it, and the moment of confusion and head-scratching that follows Renjun’s words, is just long enough to give Chenle a chance to think._ _ _

___There is no way that he can admit to his friends that they are right about him. They’d tease him mercilessly (obviously) but they’d also be _encouraging_ and _supportive_. Chenle shudders at the thought. Encouragement is the last thing Chenle needs. He already has a vivid imagination, and he’s already caught himself considering what his hand would feel like in Jisung’s larger one, or what it would feel like to see Jisung wearing one of his hoodies. It’s only happened once or twice, but it needs to stop immediately. Which is precisely why friends who might encourage Chenle’s hopeless crush on straight boy, are the worst thing he could do himself. _ _ _

___But since he can’t lie, he goes with the truth. Or just enough of it not to give himself away - a half-truth that’ll keep them ignorant of the terrifying reality that he has a crush on his chem partner and former nemesis . “I’m not interested in him,” he repeats firmly, his heart skipping. “I’m only interested in Jason. I thought that was obvious.”_ _ _

___“It was,” Jaemin agrees. “But then you kind of stopped talking about him, so we assumed that was over.”_ _ _

___“It’s not. We still talk.”_ _ _

___“So, how’s that going?” Lucas prompts, leaning back in his chair._ _ _

___It’s an innocent enough question, but it sends a twinge of annoyance rippling through Chenle’s body._ _ _

___He frowns. “It’s going fine.”_ _ _

___It’s another lie. Things are far from fine. There’s been a weirdness to his relationship with Jason lately. He can’t quite identify what has changed or why, but there’s something off about their interactions. There’s a distance that wasn’t there before, and with every message it feels like Jason is withdrawing, like doors are being shut in front of Chenle’s face, and he’s being gently pushed away. It’s left him feeling off balance and uncertain._ _ _

___He hates it._ _ _

___He’s brought back to reality when Lucas clears his throat. “Is that all you’re going to say?” he asks, surprised._ _ _

___“That’s it,” Chenle says. He brings his water bottle to his lips and takes a long deliberate drink, pointedly ignoring his friends’ disappointed faces. “And now that this interrogation is over, I have to go to the bathroom,” he announces._ _ _

___It’s not his most graceful exit - it lacks finesse and is about as subtle as Chenle’s bright green hair - but it gets him out of there, and that’s all that matters._ _ _

___There’s something he has to do, and he’s not going to put it off any longer._ _ _

___When he gets to the bathroom, he barrels into an empty cubicle. The force of his entrance sends the door ricocheting off the side walls. He quickly locks the door behind him, and leans heavily against it, pulling out his phone from his jacket pocket._ _ _

___There’s nothing Chenle hates more than playing games. He is going to get to the bottom of this Jason thing._ _ _

___Immediately._ _ _

___* * *_ _ _

___Jisung has just shoved an entire dumpling in his mouth when his phone buzzes with a notification. It was not the best decision - he has a small mouth, he needs to start accepting that. He chews quickly, then wipes his greasy fingers off on his jeans, before swiping open the message._ _ _

___His stomach drops._ _ _

___It’s for Jason._ _ _

___**Le-letsdothis:**  
Hey, Things have been weird between us lately. You’ve been weird. Is something wrong?_ _ _

___Jisung blinks in surprise. He’d expected something like this at some point, but he’d thought they’d at least dance around the subject for a while. He thought he’d have some time to think, to come up with an excuse for why Jason was pulling away. He should have known better. Chenle was nothing if not direct._ _ _

___He takes a breath. Might as well get this over with._ _ _

___**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
I’m not being weird. Why would you say that?_ _ _

___**Le-letsdothis:**  
Don’t do that. We’ve been friends for too long for me to fall for your evasions. Did something happen? Did I do something? Because you barely talk to me anymore and when you do, it feels like you’re only humouring me and that you’d rather be doing anything else. _ _ _

___Jisung can imagine Chenle, lips drawn in a tight line, typing furiously. He sounds angry and hurt, and while that’s not what Jisung was aiming for - he’d intended on the gentle fade out (the coward’s option according to Donghyuck) - this might work in his favour._ _ _

___**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
There’s nothing wrong. I’ve just been really busy with real life. You know how it goes. I’m sorry you were hurt, but there’s no reason for it ha ha_ _ _

___He sounds like an asshole, which is what he was going for, but when five minutes pass and Chenle still hasn’t replied, he starts to panic. His heart starts pounding in his chest, and his palms grow slick with sweat._ _ _

___He reopens their conversation and starts typing again._ _ _

___**Notyoursungbaenim:**  
I’m sorry. That didn’t come out the way it was supposed to. Things have been happening and I haven’t had time to talk to you the way I’ve wanted to. I always want to talk to you and I’m sorry I made you feel like that wasn’t true._ _ _

___His fingers hover over the send button. He hesitates for a moment, then taps his screen, the little whoosh filling him with a weird mixture of relief and defeated disappointment._ _ _

___He shouldn’t have done that._ _ _

___After taking one miniscule step forward, he’s taken a giant leap backwards. The fade was supposed to be easy. Messages would get shorter, sparser, more indifferent, until finally Jason was nothing but a memory for both of them._ _ _

___Jisung could have managed that. Probably._ _ _

___But there was a huge flaw in that plan - an unforgivable oversight. He’d forgotten that Chenle was Chenle, and he’d never meekly accept Jason’s slow retreat. Cruelty and coldness might have worked better, but Jisung didn’t have it in him to be cruel to Chenle, not even from behind a screen with an alias to shield him. He just can’t bear the thought of anyone hurting Chenle, least of all himself._ _ _

___Jisung sighs. That was going to be a problem._ _ _

___A new notification appears on his phone. His fingers tremble slightly as he taps open the message._ _ _

___**Le-letsdothis:**  
You’re not forgiven. But it’s a start._ _ _

___Almost immediately his phone buzzes again._ _ _

___**King Head Chenle:**  
Jisung-ah! Hang out with me? :3_ _ _

___Jisung slumps forward and lays his head on the table, narrowly avoiding the little plastic dish of dipping sauce._ _ _

___Everything is such a mess._ _ _

___If he’d planted his forehead right into the sauce, it would have been exactly what he deserved._ _ _

___* * *_ _ _

___“Chenle?”_ _ _

___Chenle is sitting beside him, staring down at his plate, chopsticks dangling loosely between his fingers. He hasn’t touched his food, barely seems to see it._ _ _

___“Chenle?” Jisung repeats, more loudly this time._ _ _

___No response._ _ _

___Jisung is starting to get worried. And desperate times call for desperate measures. He reaches over, and runs his fingers lightly against the sides of Chenle’s waist._ _ _

___Chenle shrieks, jumping up in his seat, his body contorting into a shape that doesn’t seem humanly possible. “What are you doing?” he gasps, eyes wide with terror._ _ _

___“Getting your attention,” Jisung tells him._ _ _

___“Well you have it,” Chenle tells him, leaning away as far from Jisung as possible, his knees raised protectively in front of him. “Now stay back.”_ _ _

___“Sure about that?” Jisung says, with a mischievous grin. “I might need to go in again just to double check.”_ _ _

___He reaches for Chenle, who almost falls out of his seat in his haste to get away. He thrusts out a chopstick, pointing it at Jisung’s chest. “Don’t even think about it, Park. I’m not afraid to use this.”_ _ _

___Jisung can’t help himself - he laughs. “Alright, alright.” He raises his hands in a gesture of surrender. “Put down the weapon.”_ _ _

___“And you keep your hands where I can see them.”_ _ _

___Jisung lays his hands obediently in his lap. “Is this ok?”_ _ _

___Chenle nods. His body is still tense, but he slowly lowers his chopsticks. He’s still leaning away from Jisung, balanced precariously on the edge of his stool, but there’s a small smile playing about his lips, and the way Chenle is looking at Jisung makes the butterflies in Jisung’s stomach swarm._ _ _

___After a moment, the smile falters, replaced by a thoughtful expression. “Jisung… You’re wise -”_ _ _

___Jisung preens at the compliment._ _ _

___“-Ish,” Chenle adds after a moment, grinning as he notices Jisung’s face fall. “Can I ask you something?”_ _ _

___“I’m a little offended by the ‘ish’ but yeah, I guess you can.”_ _ _

___Chenle takes a deep breath. “Let’s say you have a friend, and you thought things were going great and that you were important to each other, but then they start, not exactly ignoring you, but not paying as much attention to you as before, and just making you feel like you’re bothering them every time you try to reach out. What would you do about that?”_ _ _

___Chenle is looking at him expectantly. Jisung swallows, his mouth feeling suddenly dry. “Did you ask them what was going on?”_ _ _

___“Yeah,” Chenle says bitterly. “And he says there’s nothing wrong. He’s just busy.”_ _ _

___Jisung almost feels bad for what he’s about to do. He furrows his eyebrows, and grimaces._ _ _

___Chenle’s eyes widen in concern. “What is it?”_ _ _

___Jisung tries not to look smug. He’s not bad at this acting thing._ _ _

___Jisung sighs, an exaggerated sound. “ _Busy_ is not good. It’s just like ‘interesting’ or ‘nice.’ It’s a placeholder, and it means nothing. It’s what you say when you don’t know what to say or can’t be bothered saying anything. If he wanted to explain what was going on, he would have.”_ _ _

___Chenle blinks up at him, and frowns. “Wow. That was a little harsh. You don’t even know him.”_ _ _

___Jisung shrugs. “You wanted my opinion.”_ _ _

___“I didn’t realise it would be so blunt,” Chenle snaps, turning away from him, his body so tense it looks painful. It almost makes Jisung want to take back his words, but he’d been given a fresh chance to bury Jason, and he wasn’t going to mess it up this time._ _ _

___After a moment, Chenle’s posture relaxes. He angles his body back towards Jisung. “Then what would you do if it was you?” Chenle asks him quietly, not meeting Jisung’s eyes._ _ _

___“Honestly, I don’t know. I have no idea what your friendship with this person is like, so I can’t tell you what to do. But what I can say, is that you do not need to be begging for scraps of attention from someone who doesn’t even have it in him to be honest with you. You’re Chenle Zhong, and you deserve so much more than that. You deserve someone who makes an effort for you, and who makes you feel important. Nothing less.”_ _ _

___Chenle is staring at him, surprised. Jisung feels the heat rise in his cheeks and spread down his neck. Even the tips of his ears prickle with it._ _ _

___Chenle clears his throat. “Well, that was a little much,”_ _ _

___Jisung’s cheeks flare even hotter. He wishes the ground would swallow him up. He doesn’t know what came over him, and now he’s made things awkward again. “I’m sorry,” he says quickly, looking anywhere except at the boy in front of him._ _ _

___Then there’s a solid hand on Jisung’s knee. “No. That’s not what I meant,” Chenle corrects himself. His voice sounds a little strangled. “Just- Thank you for saying that.”_ _ _

___Jisung hesitates for a second, but then he decides to go for it. He’s already embarrassed himself today - how much worse could it get? He takes a shaky breath before continuing. “I meant it. You’re _so_ important, Chenle. In general. But also to me.” The last part comes out rushed and awkward, the words crashing together, but there’s no way Chenle misunderstood them. _ _ _

___He’s looking at Jisung again. He looks a little sick - faint spots of pink staining his pale cheeks, the corners of his mouth turned down. “You are so cute,” Chenle says slowly, quietly. “Why do you have to be so cute?”_ _ _

___“I’m not cute. I’m cool,” Jisung protests._ _ _

___Chenle looks up at him, his face still wearing that strange expression. “Yeah, you’re that too.” He smiles softly at Jisung, and Jisung’s insides are slowly turning to mush._ _ _

___All of a sudden, Chenle jumps out of his seat, and grabs for his wallet. “It’s getting late, so I’m going to go pay for all this, because you’ve already paid me in compliments today. And then we’re going to take you home.”_ _ _

___“We’re going together?”_ _ _

___Chenle shrugs. “I’ve got somewhere to be and you’re on the way,” he says vaguely._ _ _

___ _

___* * *_ _ _

___Jeno opens the door, bleary-eyed, his hair sticking up in every direction. “Do you know what time it is?” he says with a yawn, stepping aside to let Chenle through the door._ _ _

___“It’s nine o’clock, and you’re an eighteen year old who’s keeping old-man hours,” Chenle retorts, herding Jeno towards his bedroom upstairs._ _ _

___As soon as the door clicks shut, and they’re enclosed in the safety of Jeno’s room, Chenle flings himself onto Jeno’s bed._ _ _

___“You should make yourself comfortable,” Jeno says dryly._ _ _

___“Help me, Jeno,” Chenle says flatly._ _ _

___“Could you be more specific?”_ _ _

___“With the Jisung thing.”_ _ _

___Jeno nods. “Ah, that.”_ _ _

___“I know that I managed to put on a pretty good show today, and no one suspects a thing, but I still really like Jisung.”_ _ _

___“You can’t be serious…”_ _ _

___“I am. He’s just so nice, and I really-”_ _ _

___“Not that. Do you really think that no one realises you like Jisung?”_ _ _

___“I’m sure they did at first, but the Jason thing was a genius move.”_ _ _

___Jeno sighs. “If you say so.”_ _ _

___“Anyway,” Chenle says impatiently, “It’s getting even worse. He’s just so nice - unbelievably nice. And awkward, but in such a cute and endearing way. How am I supposed to deal with that?”_ _ _

___“You could tell him?”_ _ _

___The look Chenle shoots him is so full of disdain, Jeno should have shrivelled on the spot, but he meets Chenle’s eyes and his gaze is unapologetic. “I don’t see what the problem is.”_ _ _

___“The problem is that he is my friend. My friend who probably doesn’t even like boys, and if I ruin our friendship, I’m going to be a nightmare to put up with,” Chenle says._ _ _

___“You already are,” Jeno says. “But I don’t know why you keep assuming he’s straight. Has he ever actually said that.”_ _ _

___“He doesn’t have to,” Chenle retorts. “You live next door to him - have you ever seen any guys come over to his place?”_ _ _

___Jeno frowns. “Apart from Mark Lee, and that one other guy, no. But I don’t watch his front door, and that doesn’t mean anything anyway -”_ _ _

___“What about girls?”_ _ _

___“Well there was that one girl from his dance classes who was around for a while,” Jeno admits._ _ _

___Chenle is on a roll now. “Ok, your mums are close. Has his mum mentioned any boyfriends?”_ _ _

___“Well, no,” Jeno says. “But she hasn’t mentioned any girlfriends either.”_ _ _

___“But statistically, he’s more likely to be straight.”_ _ _

___“Statistically, our friend group should have more than just one token straight person. So obviously, you can’t be guided by statistics. Stop overthinking things and listen to your gut feeling. What does that tell you?”_ _ _

___“My gut feeling?” Chenle repeats. “Well, tonight he said I was important to him. And sometimes I feel like the way he looks at me, is not the same way that you look at me, or I look at Lucas. But I don’t know if that’s not just because he’s so earnest and awkward. Or that I’m seeing what I want to see. I _am_ prone to wishful thinking.”_ _ _

___“Delusion,” Jeno corrects._ _ _

___“Yes, that,” Chenle agrees with a sigh._ _ _

___“Well, I still think it would be a good idea if you were to talk to him about it.”_ _ _

___“Oh yeah,” Chenle scoffs. “And how would I do that without making everything weird? ‘Oh hey Jisung, I think about you a lot, and kind of want to kiss you all the time, but if you’re not into that then let’s go play soccer and fistbump, either option works for me’-”_ _ _

___“Sure, that sounds good. So when are you going to do it?” Jeno says seriously._ _ _

___Chenle doesn’t answer, just picks up a pillow from Jeno’s bed and hurls it at him._ _ _

___Jeno barely manages to duck out of the way. He raises his hands in front of him, defeated. “Alright, maybe not like that. But you could try a more subtle way.”_ _ _

___Chenle blinks, incredulous. “Subtle? Have you met me?”_ _ _

___Jeno plops down on the bed beside Chenle, and pats his head. “You’re smart. You’ll figure it out.”_ _ _

___His fingers still in Chenle’s hair. “By the way, have you decided what to do about Jason?” he asks, keeping his tone light._ _ _

___Chenle rolls over onto his side, propping his head up with his hand. “Not really. But I’m not sure he’s an option right now anyway.”_ _ _

___“At least it’s easier that way,” Jeno says, poking at Chenle’s cheek._ _ _

___“I guess so.” He flops back down onto Jeno’s bed, sighing deeply._ _ _

___There’s a moment of silence, then Jeno pokes his cheek again. “Ok, now am I ever going to get my bed back?”_ _ _

**Author's Note:**

> Comments/kudos are appreciated!


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